The operator disrupted the market by introducing aggressively priced data plans at Rs 49 in the initial weeks of the January-March quarter acting as catalyst for growth. "IDC expects the smartphone market to continue its double-digit growth in 2018 with the popularity and focus on budget phones, efforts by ecosystem to make devices more affordable with finance schemes, aggressive offline expansion by key players and push by the online platforms driving this growth," said Jaipal Singh, senior market analyst at IDC. However, a vendor looking to establish itself for long term will have to show commitment by setting up the SMT units here. Samsung remained at the second spot in smartphone ranking with flat annual growth in 2018 Q1. The smartphone maker is also expected to launch its new online exclusive series under the brand 'Realme'.

Source: Economic Times May 14, 2018 08:51 UTC