Calling India a key player in its growth, telecom major Nokia on Wednesday said it will launch five GSM handsets in the country within next four months.
Nokia said work on its $150 million manufacturing facility in Chennai is progressing 'quite well' and the company will meet its schedule to start operations in the unit in the next four months.
"The Chennai facility will start operations on schedule, the first half of 2006. This would not only trigger business growth for the company but also help India attract much higher FDI," Nokia vice president, customer and market operations for southeast Asia Pacific Mauro Montanaro said in Kuala Lumpur.
He said the factory would showcase both Nokia's capabilities as well India's strength to attract FDI.
When asked whether the facility would be producing all the five products that the company showcased here and would launch globally, including India, in the next four months, he said the facility would manufacture 'primary' products initially before going for high-end products.
Value-wise, the upward mobile and the high-tech middle class was the fastest growing social segment in India and the handsets --6131, 6070, 6233, 6103 and 6125-- would be introduced in the country along with others, focussing on these social segments, Nokia vice president of customer and market operations (southeast Asia Pacific) Mauro Montanaro said.
Showcasing these products, he said they were likely to be priced at $100 upwards, exclusive of local taxes.
The Nokia official said convergence and 3G products will increase exponentially from 2005-07 in Asia with key drivers being India along with Brazil and China and all the five product belong to that product category.
The models are designed, keeping in view the middle class behaviourial pattern of being keen to change handsets but reluctantly.
However, the rural market and smaller towns in India would trigger the growth of mobile handsets volume-wise, Montanar said, adding the company would chalk out a strategy to enter these markets in a big way.
"But first, operators should roll out their services in these market in much larger way than their current presence. Only then, we can devise the growth strategy for these markets," he said.
The growth strategy in these markets would have to be different since the customers there demand robust, dust-resistant handsets, Montanaro added.
The products to be launched in India will also include 3G-enabled handset, whose services are yet to be launched in the country.
The model, 6233, will be a part of 7th 3G-enabled model from Nokia in India.
"Though 3G services are yet to be launched in India, customers are buying these models because of better camera, imaging and music facilities," Montanaro said.
He disclosed that by December, the Finnish Company would have in total 15-20 3G models in India.
The 6233 and 6070 models are flap-free with the latter offering basic camera capabilities, while the rest three are with folding design.
The model 6103 is bluetooth-enabled and 6125 comes with 1.3 megapixel camera and digital music player.
The variant 6131 also has 1.3 megapixel camera, video recorder and bluetooth wireless technology.
When asked whether with the launch of the new products, the company would phase out its old models, he said some variants would indeed be taken out of some countries, but there was no correlation between the phasing out and the introduction of new handsets.
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