In a scheme that would help Nokia consumers to afford handset and accessories in the price range of Rs 7,000 - Rs 35,000, the Finnish mobile handset major has announced the launch of its Easy EMI in Ahmedabad wherein consumers can pay for handsets in three equal monthly installments (EMI) at zero percent interest. The scheme will be available through over 176 Nokia Priority Partners (NPPs) across eight cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Chennai, Ahmedabad and Chandigarh.
Nokia has tied up with Citibank, HDFC Bank, Standard Chartered and ICICI Bank for the Easy EMI scheme in which the offer will be available to consumers with credit cards from any of these four banks. Through the scheme, the four banks together have the target consumer base of 14.5 million providing Nokia an opportunity to extend the service to a large consumer base.
"Mobile customers today are far more evolved in their aspiration, expectation and usage of a mobile handset. This trend is visible across segments from entry to the high end. Our insight shows that many customers don't end up buying their preferred handset model as it tends to be marginally above their pre decided budget, making upfront payment difficult. Our easy EMI scheme at 0 per cent interest addresses that challenge and will allow customers to actually buy the handset they desire," said Shankar Subramanian, head retail, Nokia India.
Service charges for the Easy EMI scheme will be borne by Nokia and the customer or the NPPs will bear zero cost on the EMI transaction. All NPPs across eight cities will have Point of Sale (POS) terminals from all the four partner banks allowing customers the choice of making the transaction with a credit card from any of the four banks.