In May 2015, Micromax_Informatics started shipping the latest version of its Unite series smartphones with Firstouch OS. The operating system was available in English and 10 Indian languages. A key feature of the operating system is the Swipe-to-translate or Indus Swipe which helped users to translate or transliterate English text in regional languages. The operating system also had its own app marketplace' App Bazaar with over 5000 applications in regional languages. A popular application on the marketplace is Microsoft's Skype which is available in popular Indian regional languages including Hindi. In December 2015, Firstouch announced a collaboration with the Government of India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology previously known as the Department of Electronics and IT to introduce text-to-speech technology in regional languages.
Indus OS 2.0
The operating system's regional app marketplace, App Bazaar, has integrated carrier billing facility and hence it allows users to download apps in their regional languages without requiring them to have an email id or paying by credit cards. Over 90% of Indus OS users have activated App Bazaar on their smartphones and over 75% use it on a monthly basis. App Bazaar has over 50000 applications in regional languages. The operating system features in English and 23 other regional languages: Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. The company's patented keyboard allows word prediction, matra prediction, auto correction and swipe-to-translate & transliterate features to its users. Indus OS has offices in Mumbai, Delhi and Dhaka and currently has a 70-member team. The company also plans to open an office in China in an effort to partner with International smartphone brands.
Reception
The operating system received a positive review from Firstpost's Tech2 where Rehan Hooda in his review of the Intex Aqua Supre+ claimed that "Indus OS is the only shining factor in an otherwise ordinary smartphone". Abhishek Baxi from Android Authority in his review of the operating system said "Unlike stock Android and other custom Android skins with support for Indian languages, in Indus OS, menu items, icon texts, et al too appear in the chosen regional language" and "The big win of the App Bazaar is the support for carrier billing, allowing users to download paid apps and games via their mobile balance or get billed for it. It’s mighty convenient for consumers and a great motivator for app developers and publishers".
Awards and recognition
Indus OS won the Economic Times Telecom Award 2016 in the Innovation in Developing OEM Product category. On May 7, 2016, Indus OS was declared the second most popular OS in India according to a research study conducted by Counterpoint Research. As of May 2016, the OS was the second most popular in India, with a 7.6% market share. This is a greater market share than Microsoft and Apple. Android remains the most popular, with 82.3%. Indus OS was awarded the prestigious TiE50 Top Start-Up Award for the year 2016 and ET Telecom Award 2016 for 'Innovation and Development OEM Product'. Indus OS won the 'Digital Startup of the Year Award' at the Drivers of Digital Awards 2016. NASSCOM announced Indus OS as one of the top 10 startups in India during the NASSCOM Product Conclave in 2016. The company was also awarded the Aegis Graham Bell Award in the Digital India category alongside Vodafone India for the year 2016. GSMA nominated Indus OS for its annual Global Mobile Awards at the Mobile World Congress, Barcelona 2017 in the category of Best Mobile Innovation for Emerging Markets. Indus OS won the Brand of the Year award in the Technology category by World Consulting and Research Corporation in Mumbai on December 21, 2016. Mint and MIT Technology Review named Akash Dongre, the Co-Founder & Chief Product Officer at Indus OS as one of the top innovators under the age of 35 from India at the EmTech 2017 event. Indus OS has also been named as the SuperBrand's Super Startups which is awarded to the 30+ most innovative business models from India. In October 2017, Indus OS was awarded the Confederation of Indian Industry Industrial Innovation Award as one of the Top 10 Startup from India. The company's story was also documented as a case study by Ivey Publishing and is also distributed by Harvard Business Review.
