From an Indian perspective Iphone prices in India are really well out of budget of most people. Only people who can afford Iphone go for them. But even then lot of people like to try other options. Android is really dominant here and most people are rather familiar with the Android ecosystems.
That's this article's point. If someone can't afford $600 phone, Apple has no interest in them. Because Apple wants big margins. On other hand, Google is even willing to pay you to use Android to collect your data. They do it with their Android One program in India now.
Apple was giving heavy discounts to attract buyers. High end Samsung costs around same and they have good sales.
"Google is even willing to pay you to use Android to collect your data" - where did you get that? Most of the people here buy at full price, we don't have subsidies.
