Xiaomi Partners with India’s Fin-Tech PhonePe to Pre-install Indus Appstore

Xiaomi’s smartphone will now have PhonePe’s Indus Appstore pre-installed

Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi has announced that its Android smartphones sold in India will now have Indian fintech company PhonePe’s Indus Appstore pre-installed. Xiaomi’s devices used to have Google Play Store and the company’s own GetApps store installed so far. But now the company has signed a multi-year agreement with PhonePe, under which Indus Appstore will be included in place of GetApps.

Google Play Store will remain, Indus Appstore will get a new place

Google Play Store will still be available in Xiaomi’s smartphones, but now Indus Appstore will also be integrated. However, the companies have not said whether this feature will also be available in devices already present in the market or will be available only in new devices. Apart from this, the exact date of this change has also not been disclosed yet.

PhonePe’s new strategy

PhonePe has decided to compete with big companies like Google in the Indian app market through its Indus Appstore. This app store offers support to Indian users in 12 languages ​​and also has a video-based discovery feature. PhonePe has promised not to charge developers for in-app purchases, trying to attract developers to it. There are more than 500,000 apps available on this app store, making it a wide option for users.

Challenges faced by alternative app stores

However, launching a new app store is not easy, especially when it comes to motivating users to adopt another app store. PhonePe is trying to overcome this obstacle by pre-installing Indus Appstore in new Xiaomi smartphones. Despite this, so far PhonePe has not shared any information about how much developers have earned from its store.

Xiaomi India’s response

Sudhin Mathur, COO of Xiaomi India, said, “India’s digital ecosystem is rapidly evolving, and with this growth comes the demand for a locally driven app marketplace. At Xiaomi, we prioritise ‘Make for India’ innovation, and this partnership with Indus Appstore is an important strategic step for us.”

This partnership between Xiaomi and PhonePe aims to provide Indian consumers with a new and improved app store option, thereby further enhancing app downloads and experience.

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