- India's latest smartphone mandate could amount to losses in business from pre-installed apps for players, including Samsung Electronics Co, Ltd SSNLF, Xiaomi Corp XIACF XIACY, Vivo, and Apple Inc AAPL.
- India plans to force smartphone makers to allow the removal of pre-installed apps and mandate screening of major operating system updates under proposed new security rules, Reuters reports citing familiar sources.
- Most smartphones used in India have pre-installed Apps/Bloatware, which poses serious privacy/information security issue(s), stated a February 8 confidential government meeting record. Xiaomi, Samsung, Apple, and Vivo representatives attended the close door meeting.
- The document stated that the government has decided to give smartphone makers a year to comply once the rule comes into effect.
- India's IT ministry is weighing these new rules to ensure the safety of user data.
- Pre-installed apps could serve as weak security leading to exploitation by foreign powers like China, an Indian official state.
- Smartphone players often sell their devices with proprietary apps but sometimes pre-install others with monetization agreements. Therefore, the government must distinguish between these and non-essential when enforcing screening rules.
- The testing could prolong approval timelines for smartphones.
- South Korea's Samsung has a 20%, and Apple has a 3% share in India's fast-growing smartphone market.
- India ramped up scrutiny of Chinese businesses since a 2020 border clash, banning over 300 Chinese apps, including TikTok. It also intensified scrutiny of investments by Chinese firms.
- Benzinga now provides actionable financial news and trading ideas for the Indian financial markets on in.benzinga.com.
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