A couple of months ago, OnePlus made its debut in the smart TV market with the launch of OnePlus TV. Now, the company has announced plans to start assembling them in India as part of the government’s ‘Make in India’ program.
OnePlus India general manager, Vikas Agarwal revealed that the company is already in talks with global component suppliers to invest in the country for setting up component manufacturing facilities.
While Agarwal refused to name the local partners OnePlus has been in discussions with, sources indicate that the company is negotiating with contract manufacturer Dixon Technologies. The company already assembles TVs for Samsung, Xiaomi and Panasonic.
The company is planning to import the televisions panels in open cell format and then assemble them in India through a contract manufacturer. This is the same practise that Xiaomi is engaged in with its Mi TV devices.
This will also benefit the company as the import duty for open cell television panels was reduced to nil last year while importing fully-assembled TV sets still incurs steep customs duty in the country. With assembling TVs in India, OnePlus will increase the operating margin.
Many global consumer electronics companies, including Xiaomi, Sony and LG, have already been assembling TVs in India, and all of them are said to be considering expanding their operations in the country after the abolition of import duties.
