Reliance Webstore has started rolling out India's cheapest touchscreen CDMA phone, S100, across the country. The S100 is Coolpad's first CDMA-only handset being introduced in the country. The handset will be distributed as well as retailed through Reliance World stores across 100 top Indian cities. This strategy is part of Coolpad's focus to establish its presence in the Indian CDMA handset market, which accounts for nearly two million handset sales every month.
According to Sami Al-Lawati, Managing Director, Coolpad Communications, "In the current scenario, we see CDMA subscribers as the key drivers of mobile data business in India. Feature-rich CDMA handsets will play a crucial role in addressing this segment. Currently, the operator pushed CDMA handsets are primarily in the sub-Rs.2,000 price bracket."
Coolpad will follow a two-pronged strategy to drive its CDMA volumes. While the Operator-bundled offerings will help Coolpad gain volumes in the Indian market for its entry-level CDMA phones, the unbundled retail drive will help Coolpad enhance smartphone volumes as well as gain necessary hold on margins. Coolpad's exclusive distribution tie-up with Reliance Webstore was signed in October 2009.
