India Earmarks ₹50 Billion to Build Three Homegrown Smartphone Brands

India's government plans to allocate about ₹50 billion within a ₹625 billion mobile phone manufacturing scheme to help build roughly three strong domestic smartphone brands, according to Business Standard. The move comes after a near-total collapse of Indian-brand market share over the past decade as Chinese manufacturers gained dominance of the market.

From 45% to 1%: the collapse of Indian brands

In 2014, Indian smartphone brands including Micromax, Karbonn, Lava and Intex held a combined market share of about 45%, while Chinese companies accounted for roughly 9%, Business Standard reported. By 2025, Indian brands' share had fallen to about 1%, while Chinese manufacturers' share had risen to more than 73%.

Around 2014, Indian companies imported 3G phones manufactured in China, rebranded them and sold them in India at low prices, gaining share through strong distribution networks and competitive pricing. The market shifted abruptly after Reliance Jio launched its 4G service in 2016. Indian companies were left holding large stocks of 3G phones as demand for them collapsed, having failed to anticipate the shift to 4G, while Chinese companies including Xiaomi, Vivo and Oppo entered with 4G phones offering better cameras and newer features, backed by larger budgets for research, design and distribution. By 2017, Indian brands' share had fallen to 16%, while Chinese companies held more than 55% of the market.

Scheme conditions and early applicants

To qualify for the new incentive scheme, companies must have annual revenue of at least ₹10 billion, with Indian citizens holding at least a 51% stake, and must hold mobile-related patents registered in India under the company's name. Participating companies must also establish an R&D center in India as a condition of eligibility.

• Up to 5% incentive on annual incremental sales growth
• Up to 1.5% incentive for sourcing key components such as batteries and camera modules domestically
• Up to 3% incentive for establishing an R&D center in India

Combined, companies could receive incentives of up to 9.5% of sales. At least three companies have expressed interest so far: Lava International, NextQuantum Shift Technologies and Hyderabad-based electronics company Mivi. NextQuantum, which operates the AI Plus brand, has sold more than 1 million phones and is targeting 3-4% of the smartphone market in the current fiscal year. The company plans to raise its average selling price from ₹13,500 to ₹15,000 by Diwali, has already spent $6 million on research, and intends to increase total investment to about ₹3.5 billion by next year, including hiring roughly 80 foreign experts and 300 engineers.

The sub-₹15,000 opportunity

Business Standard reports that the largest opportunity for Indian brands lies in smartphones priced below ₹15,000, a segment that accounts for about 51% of all smartphones sold in the country. Rising memory chip prices and thinner margins have pushed large global manufacturers to focus on costlier devices, creating an opening that brands including Bolt, AI Plus and Mivi are targeting. Mivi has launched its first 5G phone at ₹11,999, saying the design was developed by its own team and that it intends to manufacture locally, though it has described the scheme's ₹10 billion minimum revenue requirement as difficult for newer companies to meet.

Analysts cited by Business Standard say that building lasting brands will require Indian companies to expand gradually into the ₹15,000-25,000 range and higher, categories that demand stronger cameras, chips, software and design, rather than relying solely on low prices.