In February, Samsung decided to raise the benchmark by giving its Galaxy A series an overhaul, aggressively pricing the company’s new devices while offering top-of-the-line features. Then came the three new flagship phones — Galaxy S10, S10e and S10+, all of which have received glowing reviews. With the half-year mark approaching, has the South Korean electronics giant managed to increase its footprint? Here’s what Ranjivjit Singh, chief marketing officer and senior vice-president, Samsung India, tells The Telegraph.
We are approaching the mid-year mark and what has the Galaxy A series delivered?
This is turning out to be a wonderful journey, full of milestones, especially about how we want to achieve sales in the range of $4 billion in this year (in terms of just the Galaxy A series). We have already launched six models and all of them have done phenomenally well, right from A2 Core, which costs only Rs 5,290, going up right across the spectrum. You have already seen A10, A20, A30, A50 and A70, which people really love. This range is delivering on the numbers and I believe it’s going to be another record year for Samsung.
How much of your goal has been achieved?
Within 70 days of the launch of the Galaxy A series — and I will include all the six models that have been launched — we have hit a milestone. We have crossed $1 billion of revenue. We are tracking really well for the full year… that is $4 billion. This $1 billion encompasses five million units, which too is a record.
How have the flagship devices (Galaxy S10, S10e and S10+) done?
We have never seen so much anticipation for our flagship devices. There has been twice the number of pre-bookings compared to our previous flagship offering. It went off like a rocket and the conversions (pre-booked to buying the phone) have also been at an all-time high. In way of market share perspective, things have been impressive. If you only look at the overall March market share, we ended up at 77 per cent in terms of value in the Rs 30,000-plus premium segment, which is outstanding. The entire play of the three devices has given consumers some of the top innovations, like the ultra-wide mode, HDR10+ and wireless power share. The overall momentum for the S series continues to be strong.
What about your online series Galaxy M?
Customers and our online partner Amazon are appreciative that we have positioned the M10, M20 and M30 on power. What a 5,000mAh battery can deliver is amazing.
Can you talk about your next device?
We are excited about the Galaxy A80 and soon we will announce its pre-booking. It will change the way people see a smartphone and it makes good on the statement of our global mobile division head DJ Koh who had said the company will bring flagship-level innovations across ranges. It will have a rotating triple camera setup. This means you will get the same quality picture whether you’re taking a selfie or a normal shot. There are no notches, no punch holes, nothing but a beautiful big screen. There will also be fast-charging and Samsung Pay. It’s not a flagship but it’s nothing less than a flagship. It’s great that customers are getting a slew of top features within their budgets. For example, every single model in the Galaxy A series delivers around the model of ‘era of live’. The range is perfect for a generation that believes in video consumption.
Do you expect people to move from the A series to the flagship?
It will be easier for people to move up. If we can read what consumers are looking for, they will slowly adopt higher specifications. When it comes to affordability, we have various schemes for both the A and the S series. The other important area is that nobody wants to take a chance with their data, be it pictures or messages. People want a seamless movement from one device to another, which our Smart Switch feature offers. Then there is Samsung Knox, which allows you to simplify things like your passwords because it offers a very high level of security. Be it your bank data or your social media content or your e-commerce passwords, everything is safe.
Galaxy A70 Source: Samsung