Home entertainment steadily on the rise

Amazon’s Fire TV streaming device reported a doubling of media consumption by Indian customers during the past year. Main content in demand was movies, cricket, online games and music. On average, customers consumed three hours of Fire TV and Disney+ Hotstar content daily. Sales of Fire TV in metropolitan areas increased steadily last year. In this regard, Greater Delhi leads followed by Hyderabad, Pune, Chennai, Kolkata and Ahmedabad. Although the company did not give specific sales figures for India, the number of globally active Fire TV customers exceeded 50 million. Amazon released these figures in a report in late January 2021.

 

Parag Gupta, Amazon Devices managing director India, said through voice control with Alexa, it has become very easy to find your desired content. Over the past year, a wide range of Fire TV content has been very well received by viewers, including entertainment shows, in-house productions, fitness videos, games and sports broadcasts. In particular, Bollywood movies and Indian soap operas were at the top of Amazon Prime Video, which can be watched via the Fire TV streaming device.

In addition, customers took a liking to games on their Fire TV devices. During the lockdown, time spent playing games doubled, and even after the lockdown ended, consumption is still up 65 percent, according to the Amazon report. Voice search with Alexa increased 70 percent from 2019 to 2020. In addition to entertainment, customers were three times more likely to use fitness and cooking content from Fire TV in 2020 than the previous year. Consumer electronics devices such as the Fire TV Stick require BIS-CRS certification to import or market them in India. MPR International GmbH – India Certification will be pleased to assist you with BIS-CRS certification and is also available to answer any questions you may have.

Since 2012, the BIS has been gradually expanding the certification catalog and continuously adding additional goods. BIS certification mandatory for many electronic products for industrial and consumer uses. Factory inspections are also required for some products.

If you are interested in understanding what requirements are needed for your product to be imported into India, please do not hesitate to contact us by email or phone at +49-69-271 37 69 261. There is no cost or obligation for us to check for you. If a certification need is discovered we can provide a quotation to make sure that all your certification needs are covered.

If you have any questions you can also use our chat-window in the bottom right. (Please check your browser settings if you can’t see the window)

For more information about BIS certification, please refer to our free brochure “BIS Certification Made Easy“.

Motorcycle sales up 8 percent in January

In January 2021, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) reported an 8 percent increase in their sales figures to a total of 437,183 units. In the same month last year, 403,406 units were sold. Domestic sales totaled 416,716 units in January, up from 374,091 a year earlier. HMSI sales manager Guleria said his company expects double-digit growth this year, making it the top performer in the industry.

 

Guleria anticipates an upswing in the fourth quarter of 2021 for a variety of reasons. For one, universities and colleges will reopen, and for another, public life will return to normal due to the Covid-19 vaccination, increasing the demand for two-wheelers to commute in urban areas. Guleria also brought up that the Indian government has announced numerous subsidies for 2021 that will directly or indirectly support the two-wheeler and automotive industries. Among other things, the government has allocated additional funds to develop road infrastructure, launched a program to improve healthcare, increased the price of procuring agricultural produce from farmers and introduced a scrappage scheme. Honda will also unveil a new two-wheeler model this month, which sales manager Guleria says has very good potential to become a big seller.

In India, certification is mandatory for introducing parts or components for two-wheelers to the market. AIS stands for Automotive Industry Standards, the technical automotive standards for India, while TAC stands for Type Approval Certificate. This kind of automotive product certifiation is conducted by authorities like the International Center for Automotive Technology (iCAT).

Depending on the product category, there are different certification steps. We will be happy to advise you on certification in India like AIS, BIS, WPC, TEC or PESO and are always available to answer your questions.

Please do not hesitate to contact us for further details and consultation. You can contact us via e-mail, or call us (UK: +44 2071931135, Rest of Europe: +49 69 2713769261, US: +1 773 654-2673).
If you have any questions you can also use our chat-window in the bottom right. (Please check your browser settings if you can’t see the window)

You can also check out our free AIS-Brochure, which can be downloaded right here as a PDF file.

ICAT, India & MPR International, Germany signed cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

The “International Centre for Automotive Technology”, also known as ICAT, is the leading Indian Testing & Certification Agency for CMVR certification (AIS/TAC) in the Automotive Sector in India. ICAT also regularly conducts tests of automotive & non-automotive components required for Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certification.

On April 7, 2021 ICAT, India and MPR International GmbH signed a joint cooperation MoU. The signing ceremony was held via videoconference due to Covid-19 travels restrictions. ICAT’s Director, Mr. Dinesh Tyagi and Managing Director of MPR International GmbH, Mr. Julian Busch signed the MoU. The MoU will result in more cooperation and mutual support in handling of the certification business. MPR International is now an official partner of the Indian Testing & Certification Agency, ICAT.
Together, ICAT and MPR International GmbH will work to expand their existing services for the certification of automotive products in India and thus extend the overall scope of services for their customers with the common goal to provide a framework for the future advancement of automotive technology.

ICAT’s Director Mr. Dinesh Tyagi and his colleagues during the MoU signing ceremony.

Managing Director Mr. Julian Busch of MPR International GmbH during the MoU signing ceremony.

Since 2006, ICAT (https://www.icat.in/) is authorized by Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH), Govt. of India to conduct automotive certifications. According to the Central Motor Vehicles Rules (CMVR), ICAT is authorized to issue approvals of vehicles and their components as per respective notified Indian Standards. In addition, ICAT is also authorized to carry out the testing and approval of other products such as generators, non-automotive products like IT Products, General Lightings, White Goods, Architecture Glasses etc.

ICAT offers high-quality and comprehensive services for International clients also and ensures all quality standards for approvals.

MPR International GmbH supports customers world-wide with various certifications for the Asian market. For India, these currently include AIS/TAC, BIS, WPC, TEC and PESO certifications. AIS certification is required for automotive components, while electronic components require BIS certification, WPC for wireless products, TEC for telecommunications products and PESO in the petroleum and explosive and safety areas.

MPR enables its customers to access the Indian market through its versatile certification services for all product areas. MPR has gained particular expertise in the Automotive, Electrical, Mechanical Engineering, Telecommunications and IT Sectors.

Since 2019, India has identified more and more products, requiring mandatory certification. At the same time, more companies are looking to sell products in the Indian market. Due to the complex certification process and new regulations many companies have questions and concerns on how to enter into the market? With closer cooperation between ICAT and MPR, we offer our customers a simplified solution in the certification process.

Certification for Helmets will now be Mandatory

The Indian Standard IS4151:2015 applying to Helmets for riders of two-wheel motor vehicles has been changed to compulsory certification status. Until now, the respective helmets could be certified voluntarily. However, after consultation with the BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) the Indian government is of the opinion that it is in the public’s interest to change this.
 

 
The BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) will stay the certifying and enforcing authority for the applicable products and standard. The mandatory certification requires multiple steps before a product can be imported, including product tests in India as well as a factory audit.
The change will go into effect in June 2021 and applies to the following product types:

Goods or Articles	Indian Standard	Title of Indian Standard
(2)	(3)	(4)
Helmet for riders of two-wheeler motor vehicles	IS 4151: 2015	Protective Helmet for two-wheeler Riders

 
Since the list is constantly changing and expanding, it is often not clear whether a product is subject to certification or not.
We can help you here and provide reliable information about the regulations for your product.

We are happy to support you with BIS Certification and are available at any time to answer any questions you may have. Write us an email or call us at +49-69-2713769261.
If you have any questions you can also use our chat-window in the bottom right. (Please check your browser settings if you can’t see the window)

Reduction in import duties for steel products cheers steel industry and importers

The Indian Ministry of Finance announced in February that it would reduce customs duties on imports of certain steel products from 12.5 percent to 7.5 percent, and steel scrap will be completely exempt from customs duties on imports. For steel scrap, the tax reduction will be in effect until March 31, 2022; the Ministry of Finance did not specify a fixed date for the other categories. The products included in the duty reduction are semi-finished products, flat and rod steels made of pure metals, alloys and stainless steel. In addition, to support steel recycling companies, the customs duties on copper scrap will be reduced from 5 percent to 2.5 percent.

 

 

The Ministry of Finance cited the sharp rise in steel prices on the Indian market as the reason for the reduction in customs duties. In some cases, price increases of up to 50 percent were observed. To further ease the situation, previous regulations such as punitive and countervailing duties on some products and countries of origin such as China were also temporarily suspended until Sept. 30, 2021. The products affected for the suspension of punitive duties are rod steel from China, HSS steel from Brazil, China and Germany, and flat and coated steel from China, Vietnam and Korea. Countervailing duties have been temporarily suspended on rolled stainless steel products from China and flat stainless steel from Indonesia.

The Indian steel industry and importers were pleased with the news from the Finance Ministry. Chief Executive Officer of Usha International, a manufacturer of home appliances, Dinesh Chhabra said, “The temporary suspension of duties on steel and copper scrap until March 2022 will help us keep prices stable for end users and achieve good sales in the current year.” For importers of steel products, the reduction in tariffs will also have a positive impact. It should be noted, however, that steel products need BIS-ISI certification to be imported into India. BIS stands for the Bureau of Indian Standards and is India’s national certification body under the umbrella of the Indian Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution. Product certification under the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has been in existence since July 2013 and is intended to be an assurance of quality, safety and reliability to third parties. ISI is the mark or seal on the respective product. The ISI mark was introduced by the BIS for industrial products in 1955. MPR International GmbH – India Certification will be pleased to assist you with BIS-ISI certification and is also available to answer any questions you may have.

Since 2012, the BIS has been gradually expanding the certification catalog and continuously adding additional goods. BIS certification mandatory for many electronic products for industrial and consumer uses. Factory inspections are also required for some products.

If you are interested in understanding what requirements are needed for your product to be imported into India, please do not hesitate to contact us by email or phone at +49-69-271 37 69 261. There is no cost or obligation for us to check for you. If a certification need is discovered we can provide a quotation to make sure that all your certification needs are covered.

If you have any questions you can also use our chat-window in the bottom right. (Please check your browser settings if you can’t see the window)

For more information about BIS certification, please refer to our free brochure “BIS Certification Made Easy“.