Sony inks pact with Foxconn to manufacture its Bravia line of TVs in Chennai

Sony Corp has hopped onto the 'Make in India' bandwagon by inking a pact with Taiwanese firm Foxconn to manufacture its Bravia line of television sets at the latter's unit in Chennai.

The Japanese electronics major, which currently has more than 25 per cent market share in the flat television panel business in India, said local production will help the company be more competitive - with lower costs, new model launches and less turnaround time.

The Narendra Modi government's 'Make in India' policy influenced the company's decision to manufacture in the country again after a gap of more than a decade, a report by The Economic Times quoted Sony India Managing Director Kenichiro Hibi as saying. Sony had exit manufacturing in India in 2004 after it shut down its Haryana plant where it produced mostly music and home theatre systems.

Hibi said Sony is also mulling over manufacturing smartphones in the country and may even look at setting up its own plant at a later stage.

India is the fourth-largest market for Sony with its Indian arm registering Rs 10,600 crore sales in 2014-15, which includes 40 per cent revenues, each, from televisions and smartphones. Though the company is currently looking at manufacturing only for the Indian market, it may consider exporting as well at a later stage, Hibi said.

Sony will join other multinationals like Samsung Electronics and HTC, which are already manufacturing in the country. There are also reports of Apple being in talks to manufacture iPhones in India. LG, Motorola and Xiaomi are also evaluating similar prospects.