According to a report from Livemint.com, Apple could be getting ready to open stores in India, following a policy change that allows full ownership of single-brand retail stores by foreign companies last week.
The report suggests that Apple has been in talks with DIPP, the Indian department responsible for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy within India since 2006.
There was no confirmation from Apple, as usual when it comes to commenting on rumors, so as it stands this one should be taken with a grain of salt. That being said, Apple stands to gain quite a lot by entering the Indian market. India is the second largest mobile phone user base, weighing in at 881 million as of October 2011, and the world’s 4th largest Internet user base with 121 million citizens plugged into the web. India has also been regarded as the world’s most competitive and fastest-growing telecom market in the world.
That’s a lot of potential iPhone, iPad, and Mac sales in a country where Apple has been forced to partner with resellers.
