Jawbone bets on Indian smart wearable mkt; partners Amazon

After Fitbit, it is now the turn of US-based Jawbone to foray into the Indian market with its range of fitness bands as it looks to tap into the growing health monitoring devices market in the country.Jawbone has introduced three new devices, priced between Rs 4,999 and Rs 14,999, that will be available through e-commerce firm Amazon.The company's 'UP' app and Smart Coach system can help people better understand their health and well-being by tracking sleep, activity and nutrition, Jawbone Product Manager (UP app) Jayanth Chakravarthy told PTI."India is a huge market for us. Consumers here are both design savvy and hugely interested in the latest consumer technology."With heart disease and diabetes remaining two of the major causes of death in India, keeping a healthy and active lifestyle has never been more important," he said.Fitness gadget makers are betting big on markets like India that have a young population. With a booming smartphone industry, device makers like Xiaomi and Yu are confident that the wearables category in India will grow at a stronger pace in the coming years.The UP app, powered by Smart Coach, turns user data into personalised guidance, giving them actionable insights and challenges to help improve their sleep, activity and diet. Headquartered in San Francisco, Jawbone's products are available in over 40 countries globally. Interestingly, Fitbit had also entered the Indian market through Amazon. It has now expanded into the offline market in partnership with Croma, Helios and Reliance Retail. Jawbone competes with the likes of Fitbit, Goqii and other fitness trackers from companies like Nike globally.According to research firm Gartner, the global wearable electronic devices for fitness shipments are forecast to reach 91.3 million units in 2016 from 73.01 million units in 2013.As per a IDC report, the global wearable shipment for April-June 2015 quarter grew by a whopping 223.2 percent to 18.1 million units from 5.6 million units in the year-ago period.