Next Moto G from Lenovo to launch on Amazon this Tuesday

Almost a year after ending its exclusivity with Flipkart, handset maker Motorola will finally launch its new smartphone with Amazon India next week. The device that reports suggest is the fourth generation of the popular Moto G series will be unveiled on May 17.

The Moto G4 handset is expected to come with new features like NFC, fingerprint scanner and a better battery life. It is also expected to be the first device to come with the 'Moto by Lenovo' branding. Lenovo, which had bought Motorola from Google in 2014, had earlier this year said it will overhaul the brand to 'Moto by Lenovo'.

This will be Motorola's first device to be launched on an e-commerce platform other than Flipkart since its re-entry into the Indian market in February 2014. Previously, Motorola has launched all its smartphones and smartwatches with Flipkart.

In September last year, Motorola had ended its exclusivity arrangement with Flipkart and said the Moto range of devices (like Moto G, Moto E and Moto X) will be available through select Airtel stores and e-commerce portals like Snapdeal and Amazon.in.

Motorola had also partnered with Brightstar India to offer its smartphones through a wider range of offline and online retailers. "We have witnessed tremendous growth in the e-commerce market and it will continue to be the dominating channel for us as we bring new products to the Indian market. We are glad to announce that we have exclusively partnered with Amazon India for our next Motorola smartphone," Motorola Mobility India Country Head Amit Boni said.

At the end of December 2015, Lenovo (including Motorola) was the third-largest player with a market share of 11.6 per cent in India, following Samsung and Micromax, as per research firm IDC.

Some 25.6 million smartphones were shipped in India in October-December of 2015, up 15.4 per cent from the year-ago period, it added.