NEW DELHI: India is expected to become one of Intel Corporation’s top five markets within the next three years, fuelled by growth in smaller cities. The country is already the fastest growing market for the world’s largest chipmaker.

“India is number eight right now for us. In another 2.5-3 years, it would climb to number three or four. The level of attention that India commands today at Intel in terms of resources and strategic focus is similar to what China had in the mid- to-late 90’s,” said Intel’s marketing and operations director for South Asia, John McClure.

USA and China are the top two markets for Intel. Other major markets are France, UK, Germany, Japan and Brazil. It’s the smaller cities that Intel is betting on to drive growth, with plans to focus more on marketing in the hinterland. While 60% of the PC consumption happens in the top 70 cities, the growth is much faster in smaller cities, Mr McClure says.

“While PC sales in the top 70 cities are growing at 10-15%, it’s a 30-35% growth in the next 140 cities, albeit on a smaller base. Also, a large number of first-time PC buyers are opting for laptops in these cities, so the profile of buyers is similar to the top cities,” he added.

Small is certainly beautiful for Intel. Apart from smaller cities, it is also counting on growth in small businesses, meaning any business employing up to 100 people. After all, the small business segment makes up 30% of India’s PC market, says Mr McClure.

“There is a very rapid adoption of notebook PCs by the small businesses. However, PC density among small businesses in India is still five times less than that in China. There is a lot of untapped potential,” he added.

Early this year, Intel launched the SMB (small and medium businesses) Advantage Programme to assist its channel partners to increase business with SMBs. The firm also recently launched a storage platform for SMBs.

Another consumer segment that is high on Intel’s mind is youth. It is conducting a pilot project in tier-II colleges in Pune where it conducts sessions explaining its technology and then organises quizzes around that. The company is looking at getting some of these students employed with its channel partners.

“Youngsters play an important role in the PC-buying community as buyers and influencers. The pilot is just a way of directly engaging with the youth. We will expand its scope and take it to other colleges,” said Mr McClure.