Apple launches iPhone 6 in China

Global Business

After much anticipation, the iPhone 6 is finally reached China on Friday. Apple is counting on the device to help push deeper into China where it is up against some tough competition. CCTV America’s Tang Bo reports.

The wait is finally over. With an approved network access permit from the Chinese government, Apple began selling its latest smartphone in China.

China’s three major mobile carriers have said they’ve taken 10 million pre-orders since October 10th, when the product was available for pre-orders. Chinese online retailer Jingdong took more than 9 million pre-orders. This Friday, 6,700 authorized resellers began accepting pre-orders.

Despite these sales, Apple faces increasing competition from South Korean rival Samsung Electronics, and Chinese manufacturers including Xiaomi and Lenovo, whose phones are generally much cheaper.

According to government statistics, Xiaomi claimed 14 percent of the Chinese market during the second quarter of this year, up from 5 percent a year prior. Samsung and Lenovo each claimed 12 percent, while Apple ranked sixth, with a market share of 6.5 percent.

With 1.2 billion mobile users, the world’s largest smartphone market, China offers huge potential for Apple.

Tech company profits from broken phones

About one in four mobile users have dropped and cracked the screens of their smartphones. One company is cashing in on this unfortunate inevitably. CCTV America’s Mark Niu reports.

AJ Forsythe, iCracked co-founder and chief executive, recalls having to fix his cracked iPhone while in college. Just fours year later, he runs iCracked, a company on track to generate $25 million in revenue this year.

“The best companies don’t start out trying to solve billion dollar business, I think they start out solving a consumer problem… I’m still one of our best customers. I’ve already broken my iPhone 6 and it’s two weeks old,” A.J. Forsythe said.

iCracked has recruited and trained a 1,000-person network of iTechs, who at the touch of a button can drive directly to a customer with a broken screen, and fix it on the spot.