Russia's leading mobile retailer sees no future for iPhone

The head of Euroset Group Eugeny Chichvarkin does not expect good sales of Apple's iPhone in Russia as he claimed in his recent interview to Kommersant. He reasoned of Apple IMC Russia passive strategy on the local market. "If they promote iPhone with the same effort as they did it for iPod, it will do no good", he said. He also pointed out that iPod's market share in Russia is seven times less than the global figure. On the other hand, Eugeny Chichvarkin is known for his sharp manner and his criticism is taken rather as a signal to his suppliers than Euroset's actual sales strategy. Besides most market analysts predict double sales of smartphones in Russia this year.