Xiaomi's aggressive pricing has helped it join Samsung to lead the Indian smartphone market, with each claiming 24% of market share.
Bolstered by the festive season, the smartphone shipments in India reached 39m units in 2017 Q3 with a substantial growth of 40% from the previous quarter and 21% growth from the same period last year, according to International Data Corporation's (IDC) latest Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, Q3 2017.
However, both Samsung and Xiaomi would need to further strengthen their channel play and significantly differentiate their products in terms of quality to sustain and fight for leadership in India, according to Upasana Joshi, senior analyst at IDC India.
India recently powered ahead of US to become the world's second largest smartphone market.
Jaipal Singh, senior analyst at IDC India, said: “E-tailers have popularized many trends in the Indian smartphone market, like making devices more affordable through easy financing options, attractive exchange offers on existing smartphones. On the back of fresh infusion of funds and focus on India market, the e-tailers are expected to remain aggressive in 2018 as well."
Meanwhile, Samsung is losing share in China’s smartphone market as local brands dominate.