Xiaomi, Chinese information and communication company is planning to enter Japan. It is going to introduce smartphones as their first product. The Chinese company is going to brag on its performance in emerging markets in Japan through its sales experience in South Korea and other smartphone powerhouses countries.
According to the Japanese economic newspaper, Xiaomi will set up a subsidiary, Xiaomi Japan, in 2020 to enter Japan. Xiaomi’s Smartphone Business Department also introduced its article to China’s social media Weibo and made it a fact.
Xiaomi started to get popular since 2010 with small and medium-sized smart devices that have excellent performance compared to its low price. With its low price, it is smartly targeting developing countries such as India and Southeast Asian countries. Both of which are also the world’s biggest smartphone markets.
Xiaomi ranked fourth in the global smartphone market in the second quarter, according to market research firm Counterpoint Research. Samsung Electronics, Huawei, and Apple followed behind. Though it dropped down in the third quarter, it is still maintaining its position on the top 5 world’s smartphone manufacturer company.
How this might be a big step for Xiaomi and why Japan is an important market for the company
Previously, Chinese manufacturers such as Huawei, ZTE, OPPO, and others made inroads into Japan. Huawei made results by securing 3.3 percent of the Japanese market share in the second quarter and ranking fifth. Xiaomi also has variety of lines from the ultra, middle, and high-end Smartphones to camera-specific Smartphones just like Huawei.
There will be two exciting events going on in Japan in 2020: commercialization of 5G and the Tokyo Olympics. Xiaomi is planning to strengthen its foundation in the Japanese market through its subsidiary and target Japan’s early 5G market in 2020 with a 5G smartphone.
Meanwhile, there is still no information on whether Xiaomi will release the 5G smartphone in other markets outside Japan.
