When you mention the word “smartphone” in China, the first thing people will think of is Xiaomi. Founded only four short years ago, this young smartphone manufacturing company is already dominating the Chinese market. Vazquez Sampere from the Harvard Business Review even calls Xiaomi a disruptive innovator; although it has faced uninhibited success, it retails to a smaller target market than competitors (customer segment is primarily adolescents) and has lower gross margins (Xiaomi’s prices are 60% less than Apple’s).

However, I must disagree with Sampere. I do not think Xiaomi can be labeled a “disruptive innovator” considering the integrity of its accomplishments. One could dub Xiaomi the “Apple of the East,” in light of the striking similarities between their design, interface, operating systems (iOS vs. MIUI), and even marketing strategy, according to the New York Times.

It is not reasonable to name Xiaomi a disruptive innovator when it is merely mimicking Apple. This would be like calling designer knockoffs, disruptive innovators, when they are nothing but a phony and more affordable version of the brand. It seems hardly fair to give copycat companies credit for such rapid success.  Therefore, the precedent should concur for Xiaomi. Instead of calculating their current company value, this Apple knockoff brand should be sustaining copyright charges.