Anti-American Dream
Posted: Sun Jan 26, 2025 6:26 am
Representatives of the largest Russian retail chains selling smartphones declined to comment on the situation.
According to GS Group, 27.5 million smartphones were shipped to Russia in 2022, which is 22% less than a year earlier. Chinese brands accounted for 75% of the market. Samsung's share in shipments decreased from 32 to 14% compared to 2021, and Apple's from 14.1 to 7.7%.
"By the end of 2022, the share of the lower (budget) segment (gadgets up to 10 thousand rubles) increased from 32% to 39%," the GS Group report says. The middle segment (10–30 thousand rubles) accounts for 48%. The share of the upper segment (more expensive than 30 thousand rubles) fell from 19 to 13%, the GS Group report says.
Until now, the world's largest vendors that stopped deliveries to Russia did so, as they say, on their own initiative. There was no direct ban on imports, but companies stopped them, fearing long-term consequences, in particular image ones, says TelecomDaily CEO Denis Kuskov. The new sanctions have radically changed the situation - large manufacturers and distributors are unlikely to want to enter into an open conflict with the US authorities, he believes. At the same time, market participants are still guessing what the new restrictions might lead to.
— It is no secret that Apple supplies new smartphones to the Russian Federation to replace those that need repair — will the company be able to continue this? And what should Chinese manufacturers do that are not present in the US, but whose gadgets contain American components or spare parts that use American technologies? — the expert asks.
At the same time, the canada mobile number database consequences of violating restrictions can be truly painful. For example, there are known cases of businessmen receiving long prison terms in the US for violating sanctions against one country or another by making deals outside the US, recalls Denis Kuskov.
The ban, of course, looks very impressive if you don’t know that it is at least six months late, notes Yuri Fedyukin. With parallel imports, the manufacturer bears no responsibility for the supply of its products to Russia, be it smartphones, processors or car parts, he explains.
— Can a buyer-intermediary be subject to US sanctions? Yes, but, as a rule, such an organization is created for the purpose of carrying out operations within the framework of parallel import, so it is not indispensable by default, — the lawyer notes.
According to him, if prices do rise, it will be because of the lengthening of logistics chains or because of the depreciation of the ruble. But overall, sanctions may become an excuse for electronics sellers to raise prices, he concludes.
According to Denis Kuskov, premium smartphones will not disappear from the Russian market in the end — they will most likely be imported using the help of very small companies in third countries. Or even in suitcases, using gray schemes. But this is unlikely to satisfy the demand of citizens for advanced gadgets, he concludes.
“These restrictions will not have a significant impact yet: the market has learned to work under the conditions of previous measures, has created new supply chains, and is able to cooperate under the parallel import scheme with sellers from third countries of almost any popular product,” a major electronics supplier told Izvestia.
There are risks of secondary sanctions, but since they have not been actively applied yet, it is unlikely that Russian players will suspend their activities, which means that nothing will change for the domestic consumer in the near future.
According to GS Group, 27.5 million smartphones were shipped to Russia in 2022, which is 22% less than a year earlier. Chinese brands accounted for 75% of the market. Samsung's share in shipments decreased from 32 to 14% compared to 2021, and Apple's from 14.1 to 7.7%.
"By the end of 2022, the share of the lower (budget) segment (gadgets up to 10 thousand rubles) increased from 32% to 39%," the GS Group report says. The middle segment (10–30 thousand rubles) accounts for 48%. The share of the upper segment (more expensive than 30 thousand rubles) fell from 19 to 13%, the GS Group report says.
Until now, the world's largest vendors that stopped deliveries to Russia did so, as they say, on their own initiative. There was no direct ban on imports, but companies stopped them, fearing long-term consequences, in particular image ones, says TelecomDaily CEO Denis Kuskov. The new sanctions have radically changed the situation - large manufacturers and distributors are unlikely to want to enter into an open conflict with the US authorities, he believes. At the same time, market participants are still guessing what the new restrictions might lead to.
— It is no secret that Apple supplies new smartphones to the Russian Federation to replace those that need repair — will the company be able to continue this? And what should Chinese manufacturers do that are not present in the US, but whose gadgets contain American components or spare parts that use American technologies? — the expert asks.
At the same time, the canada mobile number database consequences of violating restrictions can be truly painful. For example, there are known cases of businessmen receiving long prison terms in the US for violating sanctions against one country or another by making deals outside the US, recalls Denis Kuskov.
The ban, of course, looks very impressive if you don’t know that it is at least six months late, notes Yuri Fedyukin. With parallel imports, the manufacturer bears no responsibility for the supply of its products to Russia, be it smartphones, processors or car parts, he explains.
— Can a buyer-intermediary be subject to US sanctions? Yes, but, as a rule, such an organization is created for the purpose of carrying out operations within the framework of parallel import, so it is not indispensable by default, — the lawyer notes.
According to him, if prices do rise, it will be because of the lengthening of logistics chains or because of the depreciation of the ruble. But overall, sanctions may become an excuse for electronics sellers to raise prices, he concludes.
According to Denis Kuskov, premium smartphones will not disappear from the Russian market in the end — they will most likely be imported using the help of very small companies in third countries. Or even in suitcases, using gray schemes. But this is unlikely to satisfy the demand of citizens for advanced gadgets, he concludes.
“These restrictions will not have a significant impact yet: the market has learned to work under the conditions of previous measures, has created new supply chains, and is able to cooperate under the parallel import scheme with sellers from third countries of almost any popular product,” a major electronics supplier told Izvestia.
There are risks of secondary sanctions, but since they have not been actively applied yet, it is unlikely that Russian players will suspend their activities, which means that nothing will change for the domestic consumer in the near future.