May 16 (AZINS) Samsung Tuesday said its A series smartphones have crossed sales of USD 1 billion (nearly Rs 7,000 crore) in 70 days and is "well on track" to reach the target of USD 4 billion sales by year-end in India.

In February, the South Korean tech giant had said it aimed to garner USD 4 billion (around Rs 28,000 crore) in revenue this year in India from its Galaxy A smartphones range that is aimed at the millennials.

"We now have six models in the A series and are receiving great response from across the country. The A2 Core, which was our entry-level offering, is driving huge volume. In 70 days, we have already sold 5 million units under the A series and are well on track with our USD 4 billion target," Samsung India Senior Vice-President and Chief Marketing Officer Ranjivjit Singh told PTI.

He added that the company has clocked sales of USD 1 billion from the A series in the said time period.

Samsung, which is locked in an intense battle with Chinese player Xiaomi for leadership in the hyper-competitive Indian smartphone market, has stated that it will launch a new model every month under the A series.

The company will launch its Galaxy A80 in the Indian market in the coming weeks and the device will compete in the premium category.

While Samsung usually cites GfK data, reports from other research organisations such as IDC and Counterpoint have positioned Xiaomi to be ahead of Samsung (in terms of units shipped) for many quarters now.

"We are seeing strong traction with our M series (available on Amazon and Samsung's online platform). Our premium lineup (S10, S10+ and S10e) has also done extremely well and we had a market share of 77 per cent by value of the premium smartphone category (Rs 30,000 and above) in India," Singh said.

OnePlus, which is a key competitor to Samsung in the premium category, is unveiling its latest device later on Tuesday.

Asked if the new launch could impact Samsung's performance in the premium category, Singh answered in the negative.

"We have a strong set of Galaxy S devices and the A80 will soon be available. We see absolutely no relenting on our momentum and are looking at further strengthening. We will continue to be the leaders in the premium category," he emphasised.

According to Counterpoint Research, Samsung had 44 per cent share in the premium smartphone (Rs 30,000 and above) market in India in the January-March 2019 quarter.

OnePlus had 26 per cent share, while Apple had 19 per cent share in the said quarter. Other players accounted for the remaining 11 per cent share of the premium segment.