Of all these strategic partnerships with global lead firms, Hon Hai's EMS work for Apple is the most significant. Through its China-based company Foxconn International, established in 2000, Hon Hai has been serving almost exclusively as Apple's EMS provider in the production of iPhones (since its launch in 2007) and iPads (since its launch in March 2010), and one of the few manufacturers of Apple's iPods (since its launch in November 2001).