Apple Making India a Higher Priority for 

iPhone Sales

Apple is pulling out all the stops in India to attract new customers to the iOS ecosystem in hopes they will never leave.

For the better part of two years now, the headlines have consistently reflected how India will one day prove to be a huge market for Apple's iPhone and the smartphone industry at large. Just last month, The Times of India reported that Apple will have a banner year in India over the next twelve months, generating some $1 billion in sales in this emerging market alone.

On Monday, more clues as to how Apple will grow its presence inside of India emerged. Apple, it seems, has just introduced a wide range of new offers to generate iPhone sales inside of the second most heavily populated nation in the world.

"Apple has begun offering trade-in rebates for Indian students bringing in their old smartphones to upgrade to an iPhone," reveals Mahesh Sharma of ZDNet. "Students will get 7,777 rupees ($144) off the cost of an iPhone, while non-students will get a 7,000 rupee ($130) discount, according to ZDNet."

Indian consumers can also take advantage of an up to 6,000 rupee ($111) refund for American Express customers purchasing an iPhone 4, 4S, or 5 before June 10. The deal requires that the AmEx card be used to purchase the handset on one of Apple's installment plans in the country.
Last year, Apple initiated an unorthodox installment payment plan for consumers in India looking to pay off their iPhone over time. Although these and other tactics have helped to improve iPhone sales in the region, Apple still has a long way to go before iOS dominates the Indian marketplace to the extent that Android presently is.