Will Xiaomi be able to pose a dangerous threat to Apple and Samsung by expanding in developing countries?
This is the question that many are trying to analyze as the Chinese smartphone manufacturer just revealed plans to expand to 10 more countries. It is worth noting though that those plans did not include the United States and most of Europe.
The Chinese manufacturer is planning to expand operations this year to Brazil, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, the Philippines, Russia, Thailand, Turkey and Vietnam.
Xiaomi already sells phone such as the Redmi and Xiaomi Redmi Note in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore. Phone fans outside Asia may have heard of the Xiaomi Mi3, which is available online and more powerful than Apple's iPhone at a much cheaper price.
Last year Google vice president Hugo Barra joined Xiaomi with the intention of making it "a global company that happens to be in China."
Xiaomi has only been around since 2010 but it's already doing boffo business, outselling Apple in China and shipping 11 million smartphones in the first three months of this year – more than Motorola, as a quick comparison – and has, according to Bloomberg, set the ambitious target of shifting 100 million phones in 2015.
By turning its attention to huge emerging markets such as Brazil and India, ripe with largely untapped potential for smartphone sales, Xiaomi will go head-to-head with more established rivals, especially Apple and Samsung.
Emerging markets are increasingly important to technology brands as smartphones near saturation point in traditional markets such as the US and UK. However, with the unpopular move of China to bully everyone else in the West Philippine Sea, many expect that Xiaomi will feel the sever backlash any time soon.
This is the question that many are trying to analyze as the Chinese smartphone manufacturer just revealed plans to expand to 10 more countries. It is worth noting though that those plans did not include the United States and most of Europe.
The Chinese manufacturer is planning to expand operations this year to Brazil, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, the Philippines, Russia, Thailand, Turkey and Vietnam.
Xiaomi already sells phone such as the Redmi and Xiaomi Redmi Note in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore. Phone fans outside Asia may have heard of the Xiaomi Mi3, which is available online and more powerful than Apple's iPhone at a much cheaper price.
Last year Google vice president Hugo Barra joined Xiaomi with the intention of making it "a global company that happens to be in China."
Xiaomi has only been around since 2010 but it's already doing boffo business, outselling Apple in China and shipping 11 million smartphones in the first three months of this year – more than Motorola, as a quick comparison – and has, according to Bloomberg, set the ambitious target of shifting 100 million phones in 2015.
By turning its attention to huge emerging markets such as Brazil and India, ripe with largely untapped potential for smartphone sales, Xiaomi will go head-to-head with more established rivals, especially Apple and Samsung.
Emerging markets are increasingly important to technology brands as smartphones near saturation point in traditional markets such as the US and UK. However, with the unpopular move of China to bully everyone else in the West Philippine Sea, many expect that Xiaomi will feel the sever backlash any time soon.
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