Apple is in India for next thousand years: Tim Cook
New Delhi, May 20: “I am looking at India holistically and we are here for the next thousand years,” Apple CEO Tim Cook emphasised on Friday as the 55-year-old chief of Cupertino-based tech giant entered the fil leg of his highly “encrypted” four-day India tour. In an interview given to the news channel NDTV, Cook said: “India is much more strategic. We are thinking about a really long innings in the country. We are here for next thousand years. We are not making the most but the best. We will never make a product that we are not proud of.”
“Apple has a bright future for retail in India. We will sell pre-owned phones with new warranty. We want India to have best Apple products,” he stressed, adding that he instantly feels like he belongs here in India.
When asked about Chi, Cook said: “India is different than Chi,” adding that the announcements about Apps development facility in Bengaluru and Maps Development Centre in Hyderabad were just the beginning.
At an event in the capital, Communications Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said: “I complement Apple chief executive for a public commitment of one thousand years in India. We are ready to work together.” Cook later met Sunil Mittal, chairman of Bharti Airtel, one of India’s leading telecommunication companies which was the first to launch 4G in India and is set to offer it countrywide. It is learnt from sources that almost their meeting at Airtel’s office lasted an hour and top officials of Airtel including Gopal Vittal, maging director and CEO (India & South Asia) were also present. Kavin Mittal, founder and CEO of hike messenger, also made a presentation to Cook. “You will see a reliable sigl quality after 4G which is critical for India’s progress,” Cook had earlier told the TV channel. According to a recent report by global investment advisory CLSA, India’s 3G and 4G subscribers have tripled to 120 million in 24 months but as affordability increases, the market will expand to 300 million by March 2018. (IANS)
