Apple may have shut down a supplier's proposed partnership with Vivo

Tata Group's acquisition of a stake in rival Vivo's India business was allegedly stopped by Apple, due to Tata owning a factory with Apple's supply chain.

Tata Group, an Indian conglomerate, has reportedly put the brakes on talks to acquire Chinese smartphone producer Vivo's business in India. Vivo wanted to sell a 51% stake in the subsidiary to the Tata Group, but that now seems to be in trouble.

The sale was an attempt by Vivo to make its business more Indian in operation, under pressure from the Indian government. However, it appears that Apple stepped in and killed the plan.

According to sources ofTimes of India, Apple was not happy with the prospect of Tata Group owning a majority stake in a rival firm. This is down to the fact that Tata actually owns a factory that produces Apple products in India.

In 2023, Apple partner Wistron pulled out of its Karnataka factory and sold the whole concern to Tata Group for approximately $125 million. Tata continued to produce products for Apple using the 10,000-employee workforce, including the iPhone.

"This has been one of the key reasons that scuttled the plan," a source told the report. "For Apple, any deal of the Tata group, its key manufacturing ally, with Vivo would have meant a partnership with a competitor."

A spokesperson for Tata Group denied "this development."

The alleged actions of Apple to block a massive deal for Tata will cause the conglomerate to think carefully about future decisions. Acquisitions that could be seen as competing against Apple's many businesses could risk Tata losing its association with the major tech giant in future.

Tata has also made moves to expand its Apple operations since the Wistron purchase. In April, it was nearing a deal to get a controlling stake in a Pegatron facility in Tamil Nadu, India.