Taiwan's BenQ plans India foray

By siliconindia   |   Wednesday, 08 October 2003, 19:30 IST
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MUMBAI: Taiwan's $3.8bn IT products maker BenQ is planning to enter the Indian market in a big way. BenQ is planning to launch notebooks, mobile phones, LCD monitors and other IT peripherals in the country. The company plans to price its products 8-10% lower than its competitors, company officials said. BenQ also manufactures mobile phones on a contract basis for several European mobile handset makers, including Motorola, which are sold in India. KY Lee, CEO, BenQ told ET, “India is one of the fastest growing markets in the world for IT products and potentially the second largest market after considering its population base.” (Can Taiwanese products make a big impact in the Indian IT marketwith cheap price labels?) BenQ has recently received FIPB approval to test market its products in India till ‘05. It has been in the IT market for less than three years. The company is trying to expand into a market, which is crowded with brands like Samsung, LG and Sony. China contributes 20-25% of the total revenues of BenQ’s branded product portfolio. India’s contribution is currently negligible but is likely to change as the company is planning to launch new products. The company is currently trying to build up a sales and service network in the country. “We have been in the country for sometime now and we are still learning about it. We have built a management team here and our business is expected to grow,” Mr Lee said. Though, the company sees huge potential in the Indian market it is not ready to invest in manufacturing at this stage. Mr Lee said, “Manufacturing will take some time as the component industry has not developed in the country. In China it took us almost ten years to develop and build the component industry. Hopefully it should not take us that long in India.” The company has manufacturing plants in Mexico, Malaysia, Taiwan and China. BenQ was considering a manufacturing venture with colour picture tube maker Samtel some years ago. BenQ does not sell all the products in the PC market. It sells LCD and CRT monitors, CD roms but does not sell desktop CPUs. In spite of not having a complete product portfolio, Mr Lee feels it is still possible for enterprise sellers to choose BenQ products. “Enterprises typically buy their products in bulk and one specification is expected to suit all individuals in the company. This will change as individuals will insist on a choice even for the digital equipment they use in office,” Mr Lee said. Depending on the product category, BenQ competes against both Korean and Japanese companies in the Asia-Pacific market. Commenting upon its competitors, Mr Lee said, “All our competitors are admirable and are to be taken seriously.” BenQ has been growing at a rapid pace. Last year, the company’s branded product revenues grew more than 50%. This year the growth has been slow because of SARS epidemic in the region. The company had revenues of $3bn in ‘02 and is projecting a growth of 26% in ‘03. (source: Economic Times)