Samsung launched its new Galaxy M lineup of affordable devices in India earlier this year. It created these devices with the sole purpose of reclaiming lost market share in the highly competitive entry-level segment.
The devices had respectable specs for the price and were able to stand out against the competition. In a bid to further cut margins, Samsung decided to remove the middleman and sell these devices directly to customers. The entire Galaxy M series was only sold through Samsung's online store and Amazon. That may change for the 2020 Galaxy M models due in the near future.
2020 Galaxy M models won't be online exclusive
India is one of the few markets where Samsung has a massive retail network. It works with countless mobile retailers to bring its products to the masses. The retailers obviously get commissions for selling Samsung's products.
The Galaxy M series has been very well received in India. The Galaxy M10, M20 and M30 sold more than two million units just a few months after being launched. The online-only model worked for the company and it set about making $1 billion in online smartphone sales from India only. This also meant that its retail partners were not able to share in the success of the Galaxy M series. They have apparently expressed this displeasure to Samsung over this.
Offline smartphone retailers have reportedly been pressing smartphone manufacturers to limit online-only models as that takes away business from them. Samsung isn't the only manufacturer that's using this model. As more manufacturers launch online-only models, the retailers' business has taken a hit.
According to local media reports, Samsung India's mobile phone business team has informed the retail industry that the new Galaxy M models will be sold through offline retailers as well. Rumor has it that the 2020 Galaxy M series will come with significant hardware changes. Samsung announced its first Galaxy M models in January this year so we could be seeing updated models in just a couple of months.
