This article only represents the author's own views.
While much attention has focused on mounting difficulties for China tech firms in the West, the fast-growing India market is rapidly emerging as an equally contentious place for growth-hungry Chinese smartphone makers. The growing woes splashed into the headlines this week with news that Vivo, the market’s leading brand that is also from China, was facing a wide range of allegations over visa-related violations.
Vivo’s woes come as the company recently emerged as the new king of India’s smartphone market, now the world’s second-largest behind only China. The latest list of the market’s top five brands reads like a “who’s who” of the biggest Chinese names, led by Vivo with 16% share in the first half of this year, according to IDC. South Korea’s Samsung (005930.KS) was number two, but Chinese names realme, Oppo and Xiaomi (1810.HK) rounded out the top five, in that order.