Apple Partner Wistron Gets Initial Approval for New iPhone Factory in India

Apple's main iPhone manufacturer in India has won initial approval to build a new smartphone factory in the country.

The Economic Times reports that India's IT ministry has given assent to Taiwan-based Wistron to construct the new factory, which now just needs approval from the Indian Cabinet to go ahead. Wistron will make cheaper iPhones in the new plant, reportedly beginning with the iPhone 8.

Foxconn meanwhile is poised to build Apple's latest high-end smartphones, including the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, once its application gets similar approval by the relevant government departments. Foxconn sees production plants in India as a way to diversify its supply chain away from China, where most of the Taiwan-based firm's facilities currently reside.

Apple has been pushing to set up an iPhone manufacturing hub in India ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi began promoting his "Made in India" initiative, which requires that 30 percent of products sold by foreign companies be manufactured or produced within the country.

India is the world's second largest smartphone market, but just one in four Indians are said to own a smartphone, providing Apple with an opportunity to sell iPhones to millions of new customers in the country. However Apple is said to have had little success so far in what is a very price-sensitive market, with more than 75 percent of the smartphones sold in the country costing less than $250, according to one report.

Apple revamped its India strategy in 2018 to include better and longer-lasting retail deals with higher sales targets, the debut of official Apple retail stores in India, and an overhaul of the company's relationship with independent retailers.

Tag: India

Top Rated Comments

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69Mustang

16 weeks ago

Indian people have no money to buy flagship iPhones, so why build factories in India?
Is it cheaper than in China?

Some Indian people have no money to buy flagship iPhones. Just like some Americans have no money to buy flagship iPhones. Same with some Europeans, some Canadians, some Chinese, and some Nauruans.

Point being, don't paint with a broad brush. Yes, it's cheaper to manufacture phones in India if they are going to be sold in India. These phones are being sold in India. Apple is contracting manufacturers to build in India to avoid the onerous taxes levied on imported phones. All of this info is in the article btw. ;):D

Rating: 7 Votes

69Mustang

16 weeks ago

Let’s not fool ourselves. The average man or woman in India cannot produce the income to purchase an iPhone. The XS almost costs $2000 in India + tax!

You literally have to be a rich Indian to purchase anything from Apple. This is not the case in the US or Western European countries.
India needs a price drop, just like in China!

No one is trying to fool anyone. If you had stated the "average man or woman in India..." in your original post, I'd have no disagreement with it. Ya didn't. You painted every Indian with that broad brush. Even if only 5% of Indians can afford a flagship, that's still a heck of a lot people.

Rating: 5 Votes

gaanee

16 weeks ago

It's not about money. There are good phones available in the market for $200-300 range. These phones may not have 4K OLED HDR displays and FaceID or top of the line specs but it's still very good. Most of the customers are young folks who don't want to spend $1000 on iPhone when alternatives are available for $200-300. For them it's like take a quick photo, share with friends and be done with it. They are not particularly concerned about portrait photo or bokeh effects, low-light photography and telephoto lens with optical zoom. Many of these low-cost phones serve their needs at a price point they are willing to pay.
Google has also customized versions of its services/apps for the Indian market unlike Apple. Moreover, Apple does not have any physical stores in India, so you are at the mercy of local stores - no returns, no warranty, no Apple certified repair shops, so no guarantee of genuine replacement parts. People won't just buy $1000 iPhone or $2000 MacBook without any official customer support. Google and other OEM's localized apps are much more useful in everyday life than what iPhone offers.
So, it's not only about people having money to spend, it's about value for your money, and there are pretty good and lower cost alternatives with better customer support.
If Apple wants to be competitive in the Indian market then they need to understand what a typical customer wants and serve accordingly.

Indian people have no money to buy flagship iPhones, so why build factories in India?
Is it cheaper than in China?

Rating: 4 Votes

d5aqoëp

16 weeks ago

I’ll return any Apple product that has “Made in India” on it.

In fact I would definitely buy an iPhone made in India. I would even buy turd which is not made in China. Lmao!

Rating: 3 Votes

Nkapple

15 weeks ago

I’ll return any Apple product that has “Made in India” on it.

Why? Do you return your clothes too.

Rating: 3 Votes

Vjosullivan

16 weeks ago

I’ll return any Apple product that has “Made in India” on it.

But you'll keep your Chinese iPhone?

Rating: 3 Votes

NBAasDOGG

16 weeks ago

Rating: 2 Votes

69Mustang

16 weeks ago

Fixed.
Agreed
There's a big market for potential buyers even in India, but the majority can't afford these prices for X model iPhones.

(I've been there)

Fixed what? There was nothing untrue in my comment. Your "fixing" does miss the overarching point of not lumping all Indians together.

Curious. What's the actual relevance of mentioning the majority can't afford an X?

Rating: 1 Votes

vvs14

16 weeks ago

To give some perspective on the Indian market:

"The overall smartphone average selling price remained flat in 2018 at US$158, with high shipments in the mass segment of US$100-US$200 which accounted for more than half of the smartphone market in India. Commenting on the price segment trends, Joshi further adds, “The premium end of the market (above US$500) outgrew all other price segments in 2018 with 43.9% YoY growth, although it still constitutes a meager 3% share of the overall smartphone market. OnePlus emerged as the leader in US$500-US$700 segment on the back of the OnePlus 6 and the newly-launched OnePlus 6T. However, in the super premium segment of US$700+, Samsung surpassed Apple for the top position with its Galaxy S9 series," adds Joshi."

The entire premium smartphone market ($500+) in India was 4.3 million units. Apple ships over 200 million phones per year worldwide.

As of now, yes. It’s tiny. But think 5-10 years down the line when the market is ready for that segment. Apple will not want to start then. They will want to be there ready with the support and service that everyone in India already offers. Companies think long term.
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You don’t really know how Indians think. They look for value. I am an Indian who lives in the US and can easily afford XS Max. But I don’t see the value in it. No reason to spend $1100 on something that does not really add significant value for me (I currently use iPhone 6s). Literally every Indian I know thinks like this. There are hundreds of phones in India that provide 90% of value of the iPhone at 30-40% cost. So even if a few Indians can afford iPhones, they won’t buy it because there is simply no justification. I do know people who buy it as status symbols. But they are too few.

Rating: 1 Votes

Mac 128

16 weeks ago

I wonder if they’ll start up an SE factory and ship them to US and china for the sector of population that wants smaller and cheaper?

The factories in India now are making the SE and 6s. That’s what they were built to do, and still are as far as I know. This story is about building new facilities to make newer phones. The SE is not coming back to the US.

Rating: 1 Votes

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