“India is one of the key markets for us and we are constantly working towards introducing new affordable products which are essential for Indian consumers. We are accelerating into the era of the Internet of Things by actively expanding a richer IoT product portfolio”
BBK Electronics-owned smartphone makers Realme, Oppo and OnePlus are preparing to increase their focus on their respective connected devices businesses in India, especially the growing smart TV segment, which is currently led by Xiaomi.
Oppo will soon enter new product categories such as smart TVs, having forayed into wearable space. It last week unveiled its broader IoT strategy in China under which it is focusing on personal entertainment, home appliances and fitness.
Realme, which launched its smart TVs in the entry and affordable segment, is now planning to enter the mid and premium range with various sizes. OnePlus, on the other hand, is focusing heavily on the affordable segment for its smart TV business to drive volumes.
“India is one of the key markets for us and we are constantly working towards introducing new affordable products which are essential for Indian consumers. We are accelerating into the era of the Internet of Things by actively expanding a richer IoT product portfolio,” an Oppo India spokesperson told ET.
Oppo spokesperson said that the company is aiming to build a 360-degree ecosystem for various IoT enabled products in India.
Premium handset maker OnePlus is also building a complete ecosystem for handsets, smart TVs and connected devices with affordability as the key factor. It had earlier this year revealed its new product diversification strategy in India and globally.
In an interaction with ET, OnePlus India’s new Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer Navnit Nakra said that the company has already begun work to build a complete ecosystem play and is in the process of launching connected devices across categories like health, smart lighting, smart speakers, office productivity and automobile.
“We are moving away from the old appliance world in India to connected devices which have the ability to talk to us. In the new focus areas, OnePlus will have the ability to talk to us. In the new focus areas, OnePlus will have a larger play in India and globally,” Nakra said. “We are trying very hard to see if we can launch new products around mid-November.”
OnePlus, which is now focused on launching entry level smart TVs, will make all its smart TVs in India by 2021. It commenced the manufacturing of the Y series in India this year and by 2021 it will make all OnePlus TVs locally including the Q and the U series. “It is a massive investment from us to be closer to the market,” Nakra said. He, however, didn’t reveal manufacturing related investment size.
Fast growing brand Realme is also getting aggressive to quickly increase its smart TV market share under its broad IoT strategy. It is aiming to get into the top three smart TV makers in India by next year.
“TV business is already being expanded. We had limited models and inventory this year, but we will have new TV ranges and screen size across price points. We aim to be among top three smart TV brands,” Realme India Chief Executive Officer Madhav Sheth told ET.
Debashish Jana, research associate at Counterpoint Research said that smart TV is a natural extension for a lot of device makers as they are quite familiar with the TV supply chain. Brands are now shaping their product line-up to bring an entire connected ecosystem to the consumers and smart TV can be considered as the first step in that smart home ecosystem.
“As far as the BBK group is concerned, they are widening their price band in the smart TV market where Realme caters to the affordable segment, Oppo is expected to target a more premium audience. OnePlus is already having a fanbase in India and targeting both the mass and the enthusiasts with feature-rich products,” Jana said
In India, Xiaomi was the largest smart TV brand with 25% share in the first half of 2020, followed by Samsung and LG with 12% share each. VU and Sony had 10% and 7% share, respectively, as per Counterpoint.
