Nokia's Strategy in India

One, that its strategies - including ones like developing a phone specifically for India - are respected. But, more importantly, Nokia's win is also an endorsement of the importance of the ubiquitous cell phone as a durable in today's world. After all, unlike its competitors, most of which offer a slew of durables, Nokia is mostly a cell phone company."⁷

In 2005, Nokia was recognized as the 'Brand of the Year'by the Confederation of Indian Industry, India's apex industry association. The company was chosen for this award because of its high brand recall, well established distribution channels and being 'most preferred' by the consumers.

The mobile phones industry made a slow start in India in 1995. Several private players who had entered the industry in 1995 exited in the next few years due to the unfriendly telecom policies of the Indian government, high licensing fees and absence of a proper telecom regulatory body. The growth in the subscriber base of mobile phones remained sluggish initially, reaching the 1 million milestone in 1998. In 1999, the Government of India announced a new telecom policy. This policy planned to provide telephones on demand by 2002.