Android custom MOD maker, Cyanogen comes calling to India, may open an office in Bengaluru or Delhi
India’s has got a fast growing smartphone market, and it has been attracting lots of attention over the past years, with local talent and foreign brands all are looking forward to grab a share of the smartphone market. In the meanwhile Cyanogen is also sensing an opportunity and is also preparing to set-up a dedicated base of operations in the country over the next three months.
The Indian team is expected to be located either in Bengaluru or Delhi and will consist of some other 50 members, adding a third to the company’s existing employee headcount. Once the setup is over, the group will be focusing on adding local flavors to its custom Android operating system, most probably in the form of some local apps and will feature that Cyanogen talked about before. Quality testing and assurance in the country will also be controlled from the new base.
“India is very attractive. It is one of the hyper-growth markets for mobile today, … Premji Invest is a big investor…and that was a deliberate decision, as India a big market for us,” – Vikram Natarajan, senior vice-president of global partnerships and distribution at Cyanogen
The expense is being covered by part of the recent $80 million round of funding and could also be used to acquire some small local companies to help get things move. Premji is Investing, an investment firm based in India, was one of the largest backers in the last round of funding.
Yes of course, Cyanogen is not a fresher in India. The company has already been dealing with Micromax to exclusively install its Cyanogen OS onto the company’s handsets. We’ll have to see how Cyanogen’s expansion plans play around and whether they continue to partner up with local brands or they have planned something more ambitious in store for India.
