Microsoft has just upped its digital commerce game in India, opening up on online store on Snapdeal’s online marketplace.
The online store announcement that came yesterday (June 16) indicated that Microsoft will be highlighting its Lumia smartphones, along with tablets, PCs and software products to more than 5,000 Indian cities and towns that have access to the Microsoft Store on Snapdeal. Consumers will also have access to the same products as physical Microsoft stores.
“Increasingly consumers are going online to shop for a number of things, including mobiles, tablets, laptops and software. We therefore see tremendous opportunity in delivering Microsoft products and services through our online store to these customers,” Sharlin Thayil, group OEM director at Microsoft India, wrote in a company blog post. “Our latest store on Snapdeal will help us reach more such customers and offer excellent choice, value and service that customers expect from Microsoft stores.”
As an eBay-type of online marketplace of India, Snapdeal competes with Flipkart to gain the increasing amount of online shoppers turning to eCommerce across the region. Microsoft also has a presence on eBay, which it opened in 2013, and also has an online store presence on Amazon. Interestingly enough, eBay is also a major investor of Snapdeal, and in early 2014 led a $134 million (20 percent stake) investment in Snapdeal.
On the U.S. side, Microsoft also recently announced that it’s looking to launch a pilot rewards program for customers called Earn. The program, still in beta, is rolling out at three Microsoft stores in the U.S. states of Arizona, Massachusetts and Washington. To tap into Earn, users will have to enroll by providing contact info and debit or credit data on themselves. Users will then pick up 10 percent in Earn Credits when they use their cards at select national retailers, as well as at hundreds of participating local restaurants. Earn Credits can then be used toward products at Microsoft stores.
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