OnePlus overtakes Samsung in terms of premium smartphone sales in India: Is a change of guard in the offing?

Samsung's long spell of dominance in the premium smartphone segment is under threat. The company was earlier challenged by the success of Chinese phone manufacturer Xiaomi which overtook the former's overall share of the Indian market for mobile phones, and now, another Chinese company, OnePlus, has surpassed it in India's premium segment smartphone market. 

Counterpoint, a market research firm based in Hong Kong which has been regularly reporting on the Indian mobile markets, found that OnePlus recorded its highest growth in the second quarter, which was largely credited to the launch of the latest version of its flagship OnePlus 6. 

Surprisingly the market for premium segment phones (Rs 30,000 or more) which was earlier dominated by Samsung and Apple in India, saw a steep fall in sales as compared to its previous year's figures. 

OnePlus now stands on the top of India's premium smartphone market with a 40% share followed by Samsung with 34% and Apple with 14%. On a related note, the South Korean electronics giant had earlier acknowledged 'soft' demand in its premium flagship S9. 

OnePlus 6 

OnePlus' figures suggest that one-third of its global revenue is contributed by the Indian market. It has also taken steps towards providing better customers service that is not just limited to online redressal. The company has also opened offline 'experience' stores which help the customers have a better look and feel at its phones. 

In a blog post on its website, OnePlus founder and CEO Pete Lau thanked its Indian community for their contribution to make OnePlus the supremo of the country's premium smartphone segment. 

"India is today a community that is our eye to the globe, a soundboard for experimentation through which we understand the pulse of the customer at a global level," he said. "Three years later, India is our benchmark for creating successful global products. This young market is now set to become our second home ground, a center for product innovation. Our new R&D center in India is just the beginning." he added. 

Lau's post hinted at bigger plans for India that would have a global impact on the company's performance. "In the five years since we started the company, we have steadily grown to become a global presence across 35 countries and we have our millions of users to thank for it. Last year, for the first time, we hit the $1 billion revenue mark and this year, with the OnePlus 6, it managed to sell 1 million units in 22 days. India, as a market has emerged as a frontrunner in what has been an incredible journey, making for almost 1/3rd of the company’s revenue in 2017."