Apple ties up with Flipkart ahead of iPhone 7 launch in India

Apple has partnered with India’s e-commerce website Flipkart in an attempt to control the pricing of its devices. This will mark as the first time Flipkart will source its inventory from Apple’s distribution channel in India.

The company does not sell products directly in India, but has a network of distributors and authorized resellers. Unlike other markets, where users can buy Apple products directly from the company's website, buyers in India are directed to third-party retail stores as Apple does not have the license to sell products directly in the country.

Earlier the e-commerce giant relied on third party retailers for selling Apple products on its platform. Flipkart also offered Apple devices with a heavy discount to compete with rival e-commerce websites including Amazon and Paytm.

Apple also has a partnership with Infibeam, another e-commerce company in India to directly sell iPhones. Its new tie-up with Flipkart however includes plans to sell products such as iPads and Mac lineup as well.

E-commerce sites are progressively becoming a key platform for smartphone sales. The sales via online shopping portals amounted for 32 per cent of the overall smartphone sales by volume in Q2 2016, according to a report from Counterpoint Research.

Apple’s iPhone 7 launch is scheduled for Oct. 7. The iPhone 7 starts at Rs 60,000 ($900), while the base iPhone 7 Plus model is priced at Rs 72,000 ($1,080). The company has also slashed prices of its last year’s iPhones, with the iPhone 6s now starting at Rs 50,000 ($750).