You may have heard of the name Hugo Barra, most likely in connection with Google. However, nowadays, his name links to yet another tech giant, Xiaomi. Barra renounced his place at Google last year and accepted an offer for a Vice-President position with Xiaomi Global. Perhaps not very familiar stateside, the company that holds the 3rd place internationally plans to commercialize its accessories in the US. Although some would have expected smartphones and tablets from Xiaomi, only headphones and wristbands will be available for purchase. Supposedly this approach is meant to familiarize American consumers with the brand and to test the market.
It will not be an easy move for the company, as it has met with criticism for allegedly having borrowed elements from Apple products for the construction of its own. Some experts think that if Xiaomi launches in the US, it will face expensive law suits from Apple for patent infringement. Xiaomi has denied these allegations, using its first US press conference to prove the uniqueness of the MIUI software as compared to Apple’s iOS. According to the co-founder, Lin Bin, the MIUI contains features that are not yet available on the iOS. Furthermore, Xiaomi has been awarded 100 patents just last year and intends to apply for more.
But even if Xiaomi turns out to be the real deal, it might still have trouble on the US market. It will be going up against mobile companies like AT&T, Verizon and Sprint which at the moment hold monopoly over the US. However, if it manages to keep prices low (half of the amount that American iPhone buyers are used to), it might have a real shot of becoming a popular brand stateside. Gradual insinuation might be the way to go about it. If Xiaomi decided to sell smartphones now, it might not be able to compete with Apple. Instead, if they slowly raise awareness of the brand in America, they will probably reap the benefits in the long run.
In this sense, Barra has stressed that the company does not plan to launch phones and tablets at the moment. The reason he invoked was that there is simply too much red tape to deal with. Instead, the products they intend to sell require much less certification. It remains to be seen whether this is indeed the reason for their approach or if they are stealthily implementing a much more cunning strategy.