LAS VEGAS: Micromax has been thinking of expanding operations in more countries for a while but January 2014 is going to be the month when this finally happens. At Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Micromax co-founder Rahul Sharma told TOI that his company would start selling phones and tablets in Russia from January 24.

"Yes, we have global ambitions and I can promise you that we are going to take Russia by storm. We are going to show that an Indian company can also succeed on the global scale," said Sharma.

This is first time Micromax, or for that matter a big Indian phone company, is showing its products at CES, considered to be the biggest consumer electronics show on earth.

Micromax is introducing a new tablet for the first time at CES. The tablet, called LapTab, is a hybrid device that runs full version of Windows as well as Android, allowing users to switch between laptop-like functionality and tablet-like functionality. While the initiative to create this kind of hybrid device is spearheaded by Intel, Micromax is one of the first companies in the world to partner with Intel for the hybrid device. LapTab is likely to be launched in India in February. According to Micromax, it will be priced less than $500.

In Russia, Micromax will use the same strategy that has enabled it to become India's second biggest smartphone seller.

Sharma said there was demand for affordable smartphones and tablets that were good value for money in all countries. "We already sell phones in Saarc countries. For rest of the world, we want to start with Russia. Once we have gained foothold there, we will move to other countries in East Europe," he said. "Russia is our gateway to Europe."

The company has already hired 10 senior-level executives in Russia. It plans to have a local office in the country. Recently, it hired Hugh Jackman, a popular Hollywood actor known for his role as Wolverine, to promote its phones.

Micromax and other Indian phone companies like Karbonn and Lava have benefited from the demand for affordable Android devices. According to IDC, in Q3 of 2013, Micromax was the second biggest smartphone company in India, behind Samsung, with a market share of around 17%. Karbonn was third with a market share of around 11% while Lava entered the list of top smartphone companies for the first time and was fifth with a market share of around 4.7%.

But challenges for local phone companies remain. Users often complain of poor aftersales services by them and the phones released by these companies rarely receive a software update.

Sharma said that Micromax was aware of the problems and was hard at fixing them. "For Canvas Turbo (the company's flagship phone), we offer on-site pick and drop service if something goes wrong with the device," he said. "I can promise that within six months, you will see much-improved aftersales services from Micromax."

