The Study of Impact of Brand Equity on Preferences for Mobile Brands

1. Introduction
In the competitive market branding is still utilized as strategic marketing tools that provide
additional value for company products and services, because brands are accepted as a
fundamentally effective factor on consumer behavior. The strength of a brands effect on
consumer behavior is represented by the concept of consumer based brand equity. For that
reason brand equity defines as a valuable resource of competitive advantages for companies
because it is considered as an antecedent of some beneficial market components such as market
share, profitability, price premium, extension capacity etc.
Consequently, the companies strive to create, maintain, and increase brand equity by optimally
designed marketing strategies. But it is a challenging problem to decide true combination of
strategies that will be utilized. This point is also crucial for mobile phone sector because of the
intensively dynamic structure of the market with frequent introduction of new modified brands
that have a short life cycle.
Market trends show that the homogeneity of product has increased; meaning that few functional
differences between key competitors currently exists in most highly competitive markets. This
decrease in product differentiation is considered to be the direct result of high levels of
competition that exists within todays markets, as well as the technological advances of
production and distribution methods. Because these advances have diminished the ability of
technological innovations to offer sustainable competitive advantage and have made product
differentiation extremely difficult.
As a direct consequence, Branding has emerged as a significant feature of contemporary
marketing strategies and is now considered a key organizational asset. The symbolic values
associated with brand names have become the basis for product differentiation, with leading
strategies attempting to emulate key factors that are conductive to key behaviors associated with
consumer purchasing patterns. several research have shown that consumer perceptions and attitudes -
measured collectively, and commonly described as consumer Brand Equity - have a direct relationship to
a brand's market position and business results.
Brand equity is the marketing effects and outcomes that accrue to a product with its brand name
compared with those that would accrue if the same product did not have the brand name. Fact of the well-
known brand name is that, the company can sometimes charge premium prices from the consumer . And,
at the root of these marketing effects is consumers' knowledge. In other words, consumers' knowledge
about a brand makes manufacturers and advertisers respond differently or adopt appropriately adept
measures for the marketing of the brand. The study of brand equity is increasingly popular as some
marketing researchers have concluded that brands are one of the most valuable assets a company has.
Brand equity is one of the factors which can increase the financial value of a brand to the brand owner,
although not the only one. Elements that can be included in the valuation of brand equity include (but not
limited to): changing market share, profit margins, consumer recognition of logos and other visual
elements, brand language associations made by consumers, consumers' perceptions of quality and other
relevant brand values.



The Benefits of a Strong Brand Equity
Here are just a few benefits of creating a strong brand equity:-
y A strong brand equity influences the buying decision and shapes the ownership
experience.
y Branding creates trust and an emotional attachment to product or company. This
attachment then causes
y companies market to make decisions based, at least in part, upon emotion-- not
necessarily just for logical or intellectual reasons.
y A strong brand equity can command a premium price and maximize the number of units
that can be sold at that premium.
y Branding helps make purchasing decisions easier. In this way, branding delivers a very
important benefit. In a commodity market where features and benefits are virtually
indistinguishable, a strong brand will help customers to trust on company and create a set
of expectations about its products without even knowing the specifics of product features.
y Branding will help to "fence off" customers from the competition and protect market
share while building mind share. Once company have mind share, its customers will
automatically think first when they think of such product category.
y A strong brand equity can make actual product features virtually insignificant. A solid
branding strategy communicates a strong, consistent message about the value of
company. A strong brand helps to sell value and the intangibles that surround its
products.
y A strong brand equity signals that you want to build customer loyalty, not just sell
product. A strong branding campaign will also signal that you are serious about
marketing and that you intend to be around for a while. A brand impresses a firm's
identity upon potential customers, not necessarily to capture an immediate sale but rather
to build a lasting impression of company and its products.
y Brand equity builds name recognition for your company or product.
y A brand equity will help you articulate company's values and explain how can a company
competing in market.

Trends in Indian Market for Branded Handset
In 1996, mobile phones first entered India. After nearly 15 years and with almost 20 million
handsets sold per month, the country has emerged as one of the fastest growing markets in the
world. Indias telecom policy has been modified to favour the indigenous mobile handset
companies.
Earlier people visiting any mobile store asked for a Nokia or a Samsung handset. Some took
these international brands as a benchmark for comparing other handsets. But things have
changed. People are now asking for local brands. The Indian mobile phone market is flooded
with new handsets every week.

These days, market is flooded with high performance handsets from leading brands. There are
innumerable options available and to select the best handset we need to compare mobile phones
and then select the most suitable one.
Technology has taken a tremendous leap in last few decades. The transformation and growth of
our progressive lifestyles is solely attributed to the technology. Today we enjoy great comfort
and style. Technology has leaded us to a lifestyle wherein everything is fast, easy and
comfortable. It has revolutionized the way we interact and communicate with the people. The
biggest benediction of technology in the last decade is the advent of mobile phones.
These devices have gained immense popularity and today every individual needs a contract
phones. From being a fashionable gadget to the most essential requirement, the mobiles have
influenced our lives in tremendous manner. Over the years mobile technology has grown multi-
fold. Mobile industry has become one of the most progressive domains of the present times.
Great innovations and advanced research is the prime reason behind the immense success of
mobile telecommunications in relatively short span of time. Mobiles have become our most
desirable and wanted gadget. No one can do without a mobile phone. All want great handsets
with which we can have loads of fun and entertainment along with ease of communication.
These days a wide variety of phones are available in the markets. There are innumerable options
that simply confuse us.
In the highly competitive scenario different phone manufactures come with latest handsets from
time to time. From Nokia to Sony Ericsson, Samsung to LG and Motorola, there are lots of
innovative handsets available in the markets. The highly advanced mobile phones have great
capabilities like Exclusive Music players, High end camera features, Bluetooth connectivity, fast
speed internet access and exciting games. The advancement in the sector of mobiles is extremely
fast. Every month, new innovations are introduced by one or the other brand. It is important to
compare mobiles and carefully examine the various options available in the market and then
select the most appropriate one.
It is extremely difficult to decide which device is better, as various brands come up with the most
innovative and sophisticated handsets. Be it Nokia n series or the Samsung U series, every phone
is truly marvelous. It solely depends upon the user's choice and preferences which highly
affected with the brand of the handset.









Top five mobile phone manufacturers, by 2010 global sales (according to international
Telecommunication Union)

Rank Vendor Unit shipments Market share
1 Nokia 453.0 million 33.3%
2 Samsung 280.2 million 20.6%
3 LG 116.7 million 8.6%
4 RIM 48.8 million 3.6%
5 Apple 47.5 million 3.5%
Others 413.8 million 30.4%
Total 1360 million 100%
Source:
(International Telecommunication Union)






According to the analysts from IDC, the global mobile phone market grew by almost 20% compared to Q1
of last year. This is mostly due to the skyrocketing in smartphone sales, especially in emerging markets
all over the world.
The 20 percent difference in units shipped amount to some good 61.3 million handsets. It's a record
number and a huge leap, proving that the mobile phone business is out of the financially challenging
woods.
According to the IDC, the smartphone market grew in the Asia/Pacific, Africa, Latin America and Middle
East regions, boosting the number of overall shipments.
Smartphones are quickly gaining ground over feature phones and demand for them will keep increasing.
But IDC is skeptical about feature phone extinction as there's still high global demand for them.
In the US and Canada smartphones, like the iPhone, Blackberries and Android devices were the top
selling phones in Q1 2011. The iPhone 4 and HTC Thunderbolt were the most wanted gadgets there.
The market in Western Europe was good for Android and iOS too, as they were the main focus of buyers
attention.
Check out the top 5 chart with detailed information on units shipped and market share percentage over
the course of the last year.
Manufacturer Q1 2011
Shipment
volumes
Q1 2011
Market
share
Q1 2010
Shipment
volumes
Q1 2010
Market
share
Year-to-year
change
Nokia 108.5 29.2% 107.8 34.7% 0.6%
Samsung 70.0 18.8% 64.3 20.7% 8.9%
LG Electronics 24.5 6.6% 27.1 8.7% -9.6%
Apple 18.7 5.0% 8.7 2.8% 114.9%
ZTE 15.1 4.1% 10.4 3.3% 45.2%
Others 135 36.3% 92.2 29.7% 46.4%
Total 371.8 100.0% 310.5 100.0% 19.8%
Nokia still remains at the top of the mobile food chain, although it did lose some 5.5% of market share
year-to-year. LG also gave up some ground with its market share going from 8.7% down to 6.6%, but this
will probably change as its new 3D-capable devices hit the shelves in mass numbers.
Apple doubled its market share due to their consecutive record quarter.





Indian Mobile Handset Market Grows 15 percent in Financial Year 2011
Nokia, Samsung, Micromax, Blackberry and LG among top 5 mobile brands in India, finds a
new study by Voice&Data
(Voice&Data is India's only magazine on the business of communications providing vital
information, statistics and analyses on the business, technology and regulatory aspects of Indian
telecom and networking. )
Revenues of the Indian mobile handset market grew by 15 per cent to touch Rs 33,171 crore in
2010-11 from Rs 28,897 crore a year back, according to an annual survey by the telecom
industry journal Voice&Data.
The16th annual survey 'V&D 100' covered all the mobile handset companies doing business in
India across categories like feature phones, multimedia phones, enterprise phones and
smartphones. Both multi-national and Indian mobile phone firms were surveyed for this report.
According to the survey report, Nokia remained the #1 player in handset business in FY2010-11
with revenue of Rs 12,929 crore showing a growth of 0.2 per cent over Rs 12,900 crore it did in
FY2009-10. It lost market share in low-end segments to home grown handset makers like
Micromax, Karbonn and Spice whereas it's high-end phones faced a tough competition from
brands like Samsung, BlackBerry and HTC.

Analysts at Voice&Data attribute Nokia's loss of market share to its lack of dual-SIM phones in
its portfolio. Dual-SIM phones have become an increasing phenomenon among value conscious
Indian consumers. For FY2010-11, Nokia enjoys a market share of 39.0 pc.










































The report says the Finnish firm is followed by Samsung with revenues of Rs 5,720 crore and the
company captured market share of 17.2 pc. The company grew by 21.7 pc in FY2010-11 from Rs 4,700
Companies Market Share in
Q1 2011
Revenue
FY 2010-11
Revenue
FY 2009-10
Nokia
Samsung
MicroMax
BlackBerry
LG






crore it did a year before. Samsung's success can be attributed to its rich product portfolio on various
popular operating systems like Windows, Android and Bada. The company's entry level smartphone
'Wave' and 'Galaxy S' have been hugely successful during the period. For FY2010-11, the company's 3G
phones contributed 5 pc of its entire sales, adds Voice&Data, specialty publisher CyberMedias flagship
journal for the telecom industry.
Also read: 200 pc increase in Android malware samples
Homegrown handset company Micromax captured #3 slot among V&D100 Top 10 mobile handset brands
for FY2010-11. The company grew 43 pc during the fiscal to register revenue of Rs 2,289 crore from Rs
1,602 crore a year before, and grabbed a market share of 6.9 pc.
For the first time ever since Voice&Data started tracking Indian mobile handsets business, Canadian
firm Research in Motions brand BlackBerry ranked among top 5 mobile phone brands in India.
Positioning itself at #4, the Blackberry garnered revenue of Rs 1,950 in FY2010-11, up 61.2 pc from Rs
1,210 in FY2009-10. Its entry level smartphone saw more sales in the fourth quarter than all other
three quarters put together. The company grabbed a market share of 5.9 pc.
Taiwanese handset maker HTC saw a growth of 99 pc, the highest, among all the brands surveyed by
Voice&Data. HTC's revenue for FY2010-11 grew to Rs 450 crore from Rs 226 crore in FY2009-10 and
holds 1.4 pc market share.
Most other Indian brands including Lava, Intex and Zen have shown almost a flat growth.
The mobile phone analysts at Voice&Data expect the partnership with Microsoft and Nokia to be a
game changer for the two companies post their expected launch of WP7 phone in the next 6-12
months. The price conscious Indian consumers could benefit in the current fiscal as domestic handset
players like Maxx, Karbonn and Micromax roll out made in India handsets from their own
manufacturing plants.
As the 3G services extend nationwide, the 3G phones would see a much bigger traction triggering
entry of more 3G enabled phones at affordable prices, concludes Voice&Data study.The mobile data
card market grew at 52.3 pc to Rs 1077 crore with Huawei and ZTE garnering Rs 630 crore and Rs 374
crore from this segment. The fixed phone market shrunk by over a quarter to post revenues of Rs 228
crore, with the public sector telephone instruments maker ITIs revenues slipping below Rs 10 crore
mark to Rs 8 crore.




Moblle hundset sules ln Indlu to touch 220 mllllon ln 2011: Gurtner
June 19, 2011, New Delhi: The number of mobile users in India is increasing
by leaps and bounds and this furitated the growth of mobile handset industry. Experts are saying
that India might experiecne the sale of around 220 million mobile handsets in 2011 alone as per the
latest estimates from global research group Gartner. India, one of the fastest growing handset
markets in the world, has millions of mobile phone users whose count are rising every month. As per
current trends, Gartner has projected that about 220 million handsets are expected to be sold in
India in 2011.
Huge growth is expected in terms of mobile phone users in the coming months. The share of low
end devices (in the total handsets sold) is high, Gartners Principal Research Analyst Anshul Gupta
told media.
Around 175 million handsets were sold last year in India. As many as 50.7 million mobile devices and
three million smartphones were sold during the first three months of 2011, Gartner estimates
showed.
In the wake of substantial growth, the competition has also increased, especially with rising number
of local and Chinese brands. Local and Chinese brands alone account for over 50 per cent market
share.
Gupta noted that there are more than 150 brands in the Indian market.
Price competitiveness and value for money devices from local and Chinese players are giving a
tough competition to big global brands, Gartner said. Latest figures from the Telecom Regulatory
Authority of India (Trai) showed that mobile subscriber base in the country rose to 826.93 million at
the end of April 2011.
NOV25
Mobile Handset Market in India: Current Scenario & Future
Prospects
FeaturedAdd comments
The Indian mobile handset arena, at present, appears fully packed with numerous options to look at, with models
varying from the cheapest across the world, the Vodafone 150 (VF 150) sold for INR 799 (USD 18) featuring only the
basic attributes of a cell phone, to the likes of iPhone that feature some of the most sophisticated technologies. At
the first look, this reflects the focus the domestic market is receiving from some of the worlds leading handset
players such as Nokia, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and Motorola, which are betting high on the fast-growing demand
for mobile handsets across the country. The same understanding has exactly been the trigger behind the flood of
new handsets launched in the past couple of years, as players struggle to capture a larger pie of this hot cake.
Taking a look back to the past decade, when owning a handset symbolized a high status among people, the Indian
cellphone market has come up very strong, riding on the wave of rising wireless subscriber base, which recently
crossed 600 million mark in mid 2010, and consistent decline in the Average Selling Price (ASP) of handsets, which
has come down to INR 2500 (USD 50) in 2010. A few other key factors known to have contributed to this
phenomenal growth are rising disposable incomes, affordable SIM registration and airtime charges. All these
factors have assisted in owning a handset increasingly affordable to masses in the past 10 years. Additionally, with
the rapid advancements in the technological field, the introduction of innovative features with sophisticated
technologies that have potential to live up to the customers growing expectations has become more of an industry
norm and a challenge for existing players to survive in the market.
Understanding the growing appetite of Indian consumers, a large number of local players such as Micromax, Spice,
LAVA, and Lemon have jumped into reap profits on the back of local advantage such as relatively better consumer
understanding. And, to everyones surprise, these players have also been successful in their drive as they now
enjoy a huge share in the domestic handset market. While the leader, Nokia is way above other players, in terms
of market share (volume), accounting for more than 50% of the domestic handset sales, the new players have
miraculously grabbed approximately 14% share of the overall market, as per the industry figures.

These are the companies which seem to have hit a jackpot in the domestic market in terms of volume sales, as
they now jointly stand at the 3rd spot in the Indian handset market, right behind the market leader Nokia, and
Samsung. The level of achievement for these players seems way higher when one comes to know that almost all
the global handset manufacturers are already present in the market. A key point which has enabled these players
to grow so fast is the level of innovation they have brought into the market, something which seems to have forced
even the leaders to follow. The trend is validated by the recent launch of dual-SIM handsets by domestic leader
NOKIA. It were these local players, which introduced such innovative and value-added features in mobiles, as the
one with nearly 30 days of battery back-up, and dual SIM card options.
Future Prospects:
Presently sprinting on a high speed track, the Indian handset market is poised to touch record levels by 2015 in
terms of volume sales. A major sales growth is expected to come on the back of rising disposable incomes, growing
demand for innovative features, applications, and offerings such as the ones recently introduced by local players
Micromax, KARBONN, and LAVA.
The mobile handset teledensity (handsets per 100 inhabitants) in India currently stands at nearly 45%, representing
a huge untapped market, especially the rural sector. The industry leader, Nokia seems to have felt the market
pulse as, during the period 2009-10, the company introduced more than 20 devices through a vast distribution
network of 200,000 retail outlets, out of which nearly 45% were based in rural areas. Moreover, with the urban
markets touching saturation levels, the focus is bound to shift towards rural sector, where customers are highly
price sensitive and most of the purchase decisions are taken on the POS (point of sale) only. Additionally, in the
rural sector, sales are primarily driven by factors such as easy affordability, quality, and at times easy-to-use
features.
The introduction of 3G services is expected to be another crucial growth driver in the domestic market as
it is expected to push demand for high-end handsets to new highs, especially for the ones with 3G feature.
This would certainly work in favour of handset manufacturers which are increasingly strained by the ever
declining handset ASP. The forecast is validated by the huge interest received from mobile network
operators during the recently completed auction of 3G licenses, reportedly generating a whopping INR
650 million for the government, as operators realise the untapped potential of these services across the
country. However, in contrast to the global counterparts, India, though being a developing nation, lags
way behind many developed nations, such as South Korea, Japan, and the US, where 3G entered almost at
the start of the 21st century. Thats one of the reasons India offers a lot of potential for global handset
manufacturers in terms of both new and replacement handset sales, compared to the developed economies
where mobile teledensity ranges between 90%-100% and hence offer less scope for new handsets.
Hence, it can be inferred that as the country enters the 2nd era of revolution in mobile handset market, where
focus shifts from mere owning a cellphone with limited features to the one featuring all the advanced capabilities,
such as QWERTY keypad, 3G, and high quality camera, the high-end models, especially the smart phones, are
expected to witness a steep growth curve through 2015. On the other hand, despite the estimated growth in
demand for high-end handsets, it would not be illogical to forecast that the low-cost handsets would still account
for a majority share in the handset market in terms of volume sales, considering the fact that this category
continues to witness consistent decline in ASP, as majority of the new players are targeting this category with
innovative offerings.

Brand recognition and other reactions are created by the use of the product or service and
through the influence of advertising, design, and media commentary. A brand is a symbolic
embodiment of all the information connected to the product and serves to create associations and
expectations around it. A brand often includes a logo, fonts, color schemes, symbols, and sound,
which may be developed to represent implicit values, ideas, and even personality
Marketers engaged in branding seek to develop or align the expectations behind the brand
experience, creating the impression that a brand associated with a product or service has certain
qualities or characteristics that make it special or unique. A brand image may be developed by
attributing a "personality" to or associating an "image" with a product or service, whereby the
personality or image is "branded" into the consciousness of consumers. A brand is therefore one
of the most valuable elements in the purchasing process. The art of creating and maintaining a
brand is called brand management. A brand which is widely known in the marketplace acquires
brand recognition. When brand recognition builds up to a point where a brand enjoys a critical
mass of positive sentiment in the marketplace, it is said to have achieved brand franchise. One
goal in brand recognition is the identification of a brand without the name of the company
present. For example, Nokia has been successful at branding with their particular logo punch
lines and specific functional products.









According to the Market intelligence firm IDCs India Quarterly Mobile Handsets Tracker, 4Q
2009 March 2010 release, Nokia had the largest share of 54.1% in terms of units sold during
calendar year 2009.The two Korean companies Samsung with a 9.7% share and LG with a 6.4%
share for the year end December 31, 2009 were at No. 2 and No. 3 spots, respectively. The
combined market share of the local brands share jumped from 3% to 14% compared to last year.
There were only five players in 2008. Now there are more than 30 different phone makers.

According to Prem Kumar, CEO, Fly mobiles, The Chinese phones are good as far as features
and looks are concerned but they fall flat on security, usability and servicing. The Indian
consumer is smart enough to realise the credibility and after sale support of global brands and
choose to stick to them. He also added that there are short terms brands available in the Indian
market but companies, which are here to stay and deliver the best are those who get into serious
consumer research and deliver a good product and support it with great services.
There has been an increase in so-called copy cat models in the lower end market resembling
high end smartphones. Most of them are available at one tenth of the price of branded
smartphones. Nokia was not initially interested in dual sim handsets. But it realised the
increasing popularity of the dual sim mobile handset produced by the local brands. Now Nokia
has finally launched dual SIM mobile phones in India-C1 and C2.

Almost all the brands are focusing on two segments for volume sales: low-end bar-phone and
high battery capacity phone with loud music and video support. Major sales happen only
between the brackets of INR1000 INR 3000. People are looking for an economical phone
with great entertainment value.
Indian handset manufacturing companies are venturing into international destinations, too. Apart
from the SAARC territory, they are doing good business in places like Brazil, West Asia, South
America, East Europe and Africa. Indian handsets are attracting them as they are providing high
end technology at affordable prices.
The fast pace of development of technology makes research and product upgradation the key to
survival. Consumers demands keep on evolving. We understand that smart-phone should play
the dual role of a mobile handset and a laptop for consumers.

Rural centric approach
Local brands are targeting the rural market first and then moving to the urban cities. They
believe that they have tremendous opportunity due to their cost factor and the multinational
brands concentrating more in urban cities compared to rural areas.
Local brands have come up with unique customised features to address the rural needs like
inbuilt mosquito repellant, fake currency reader, 30 day battery back up, cosmetic compact
shaped handset fitted with make-up mirror, Hindi QWERTY, charging by sunlight, GSM and
CDMA features on the same handset, etc.
Their marketing efforts are no less than big player. Many have roped in big Bollywood
celebrities and famous sportspersons. They are coming with innovative ways like selling
handsets from post offices. Retailers prefer the local brand more than the big guns as they reap
better profits.









Top five mobile phone manufacturers, by 2010 global sales (according to international
Telecommunication Union)

Top five mobile phone manufacturers, by 2010 global sales

Rank Vendor Unit shipments Market share

1 Nokia 453.0 million 33.3%

2 Samsung 280.2 million 20.6%

3 LG 116.7 million 8.6%

4 RIM 48.8 million 3.6%

5 Apple 47.5 million 3.5%

Others 413.8 million 30.4%

Total 1360 million 100%

Source:
(International Telecommunication Union)




Rank Vendor
Unit
shipments
Market share
1 Nokia
453.0
million
33.3%




Top 10 Mobile companies in India
India stands in the front row in the mobile phone business. Many companies are introducing
mobile handsets with different advanced features. On an average, nearly one crore people are
buying mobile phones. When comparison is between last financial year and the previous
financial year to it, Nokia Company belonging to Finland tops the market. Though it continues to
be the top most company in mobile handset business, it is noticeable that its share in the market
has reduced by 12%. At the same time, market share of Samsung Company has improved by
7.5%. Following table shows the representation of companies in mobile handset market (Based
on Voice and Data Survey, June 2010).


Company
2008-09
(share in Percentage)
2009-10
(Share in Percentage)
Growth/ Decline
(in percentages)
Nokia 64.0 52.2 -11.8
Samsung 10.0 17.4 7.4
LG 4.5 5.9 1.4
Micromax

4.1 4.1
Spice Mobiles 2.0 3.9 1.9
Karbonn

3.0 3.0
Sony Ericson 6.0 3.0 -3.0
ZTE 5.6 1.9 -3.7
Huwaii 1.3 1.7 0.4
Motorola 3.5 1.0 -2.5
Other
companies
3.1 5.9 2.8

Revenues of the Indian mobile handset market grew by 15% to touch Rs 33,171 crore in 2010-11
from Rs 28,897 crore a year back. In the 16th annual survey of 'V&D 100' (Voice&Data is
India's magazine on the business of communications providing vital information, statistics and
analyses on the business, technology and regulatory aspects of Indian telecom and
networking.)covered all the mobile handset companies doing business in India across categories
like feature phones, multimedia phones, enterprise phones and smartphones. Both multi-national
and Indian mobile phone firms were surveyed for this report.
Nokia remained the #1 player in handset business in FY2010-11 with revenue of Rs 12,929 crore
showing a growth of 0.2% over Rs 12,900 crore it did in FY2009-10. It lost market share in low-
end segments to home grown handset makers like Micromax, Karbonn and Spice whereas it's
high-end phones faced a tough competition from brands like Samsung, BlackBerry and HTC.
Nokia has lost market share due to the lack of dual-SIM phones in its portfolio. Dual-SIM
phones have become an increasing phenomenon among value conscious Indian consumers. For
FY2010-11, Nokia enjoys a market share of 39.0%.
The Finnish firm was followed by Samsung with revenues of Rs 5,720 crore and the company
captured market share of 17.2%. The company grew by 21.7% in FY2010-11 from Rs 4,700
crore it did a year before. Samsung's success can be attributed to its rich product portfolio on
various popular operating systems like Windows, Android and Bada. The company's entry level
smartphone 'Wave' and 'Galaxy S' have been hugely successful during the period. For FY2010-
11, the company's 3G phones contributed 5% of its entire sales, adds Voice&Data, specialty
publisher CyberMedia's flagship journal for the telecom industry.
Homegrown handset company Micromax captured #3 slot among V&D100 Top 10 mobile
handset brands for FY2010-11. The company grew 43% during the fiscal to register revenue of
Rs 2,289 crore from Rs 1,602 crore a year before, and grabbed a market share of 6.9%.
For the first time ever since Voice&Data started tracking Indian mobile handsets business,
Canadian firm Research in Motion's brand BlackBerry ranked among top 5 mobile phone brands
in India. Positioning itself at #4, the Blackberry garnered revenue of Rs 1,950 in FY2010-11, up
61.2% from Rs 1,210 in FY2009-10. Its entry level smartphone saw more sales in the fourth
quarter than all other three quarters put together. The company grabbed a market share of 5.9%.
Taiwanese handset maker HTC saw a growth of 99%, the highest, among all the brands surveyed
by Voice&Data. HTC's revenue for FY2010-11 grew to Rs 450 crore from Rs 226 crore in
FY2009-10 and holds 1.4% market share.
Most other Indian brands including Lava, Intex and Zen have shown almost a flat growth.
The mobile phone analysts at Voice&Data expect the partnership with Microsoft and Nokia to be
a game changer for the two companies post their expected launch of WP7 phone in the next 6-12
months. The price conscious Indian consumers could benefit in the current fiscal as domestic
handset players like Maxx, Karbonn and Micromax roll out made in India handsets from their
own manufacturing plants.
As the 3G services extend nationwide, the 3G phones would see a much bigger traction
triggering entry of more 3G enabled phones at affordable prices.
The mobile data card market grew at 52.3% to Rs 1077 crore with Huawei and ZTE garnering Rs
630 crore and Rs 374 crore from this segment. The fixed phone market shrunk by over a quarter
to post revenues of Rs 228 crore, with the public sector telephone instruments maker ITI's
revenues slipping below Rs 10 crore mark to Rs 8 crore.
These days, market is flooded with high performance handsets from leading brands. There are
innumerable options available and to select the best handset we need to compare mobile phones
and then select the most suitable one.
Technology has taken a tremendous leap in last few decades. The transformation and growth of
our progressive lifestyles is solely attributed to the technology. Today we enjoy great comfort
and style. Technology has leaded us to a lifestyle wherein everything is fast, easy and
comfortable. It has revolutionized the way we interact and communicate with the people. The
biggest benediction of technology in the last decade is the advent of mobile phones.
These devices have gained immense popularity and today every individual needs a contract
phones. From being a fashionable gadget to the most essential requirement, the mobiles have
influenced our lives in tremendous manner. Over the years mobile technology has grown multi-
fold. Mobile industry has become one of the most progressive domains of the present times.
Great innovations and advanced research is the prime reason behind the immense success of
mobile telecommunications in relatively short span of time. Mobiles have become our most
desirable and wanted gadget. No one can do without a mobile phone. All want great handsets
with which we can have loads of fun and entertainment along with ease of communication.
These days a wide variety of phones are available in the markets. There are innumerable options
that simply confuse us.
In the highly competitive scenario different phone manufactures come with latest handsets from
time to time. From Nokia to Sony Ericsson, Samsung to LG and Motorola, there are lots of
innovative handsets available in the markets. The highly advanced mobile phones have great
capabilities like Exclusive Music players, High end camera features, Bluetooth connectivity, fast
speed internet access and exciting games. The advancement in the sector of mobiles is extremely
fast. Every month, new innovations are introduced by one or the other brand. It is important to
compare mobiles and carefully examine the various options available in the market and then
select the most appropriate one.
It is extremely difficult to decide which device is better, as various brands come up with the most
innovative and sophisticated handsets. Be it Nokia n series or the Samsung U series, every phone
is truly marvelous. It solely depends upon the user's choice and preferences which highly
affected with the brand of the handset.








































Mobile phone manufacturers in India have turned the telecom industry into one of the most
beneficial and lucrative markets for the global mobile manufacturers. Most of these mobile
phones support dual SIM which is a growing requirement for almost 30-40 per cent of the mobile
phone users in India. During IPL-3, the telecom industry saw a massive publicity with two main
manufacturers making the most of it including Maxx mobiles and Karbonn mobiles. These major
players advertised heavily during the third season of the Indian Premier League. The famous
sponsorship called Karbonn Kamaal Katch is simply unforgettable which works in favor of
Karbonn mobiles. It might sound astounding but there are 40 mobile manufacturers in India
offering varieties of mobile phones to the ever growing mobile population in India.
Some of the leading mobile phone manufacturers in India are Motorola, Nokia, Panasonic,
Samsung, Sharp, Sony Ericsson, HTC, Philips, Sonim Technologies, LG, Mitsubishi, BenQ-
Siemens, Micro Max, Karbonn mobiles and many more. Nokia, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and
Reliance continue to remain the leading players with Nokia acquiring 36 percent of the global
market share of the 40 players populating the industry. The cell phone manufacturers like Micro
Max and Karbonn are the new entrants who used IPL 3 as a platform to announce their presence
in the wide spread mobile phone market.
Mobile phone manufacturers in India are at logger heads with each company launching
innovative and exciting features every year to seduce the buyer. Looking at such an intense
competition among almost 40 manufacturers, each manufacturer tries to get an extra edge over
others and this calls for the introduction of new mobile phones. In order to beat the competition,
these mobile phone manufacturers are now producing world-class products at affordable prices.
Since the cellular phone market is looking to grow into a booming industry, for each player it is
important to outshine others and for this, unique features and great looks serve the purpose.
Micro Maxx mobile offers dual SIM handsets which are available at never heard before prices.
To meet the growing expectations of the users, Karbonn mobiles have come up with a perfect
blend of looks, features, technology and quality. The dual SIM phones launched by Karbonn
include K650, K770, K443, K300, K50 and many other exciting models. Dual SIM mobile
industry is growing rapidly in order to do away with the hassles of carrying two mobile phones
anywhere you go.
With so many options available in the market, people are choosing from a wide range of
affordable hand sets and the upcoming mobile phone manufacturers like Micro Maxx and
Karbonn are taking advantage of this. They have come up with some of the best hand sets at
reasonable prices which make them the preferred choice of the mobile users.