India To Become Second Largest Broadband Mkt By 2016

The GSMA has announced that India will become the second largest Mobile Broadband market globally within the next four years with 367 million Mobile Broadband connections by 2016. In doing so, India will overtake the US, which will account for 337 million Mobile Broadband connections by 2016, but will still be second to China, which will have reached 639 million Mobile Broadband connections in the same period.

Since 3G licenses were first awarded to mobile operators in India in September 2010, Mobile Broadband connectivity has grown steadily. There are now more than 10 million HSPA connections across the country, and this is expected to grow exponentially, by 900 per cent, to more than 100 million connections in 2014. This will make India the largest HSPA market worldwide within the next two years, surpassing China, Japan and the US in the process.

“The mobile industry in India is set for immense growth as Mobile Broadband technologies such as HSPA and LTE start to proliferate, but there is scope for far greater development,” said Anne Bouverot, director general of the GSMA. “To take full advantage of this, the Indian government should facilitate the timely release of additional spectrum in a fair and transparent way for all stakeholders. The benefits are clear to see - a 10 per cent increase in Mobile Broadband penetration could contribute as much as US$80 billion (INR 3,506 billion) of revenue across the country’s transport, healthcare and education sectors by 2015.”

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According to Wireless Intelligence, with an average retail price of US$500, the cost of an LTE smartphone is four times the average monthly GDP per capita in India, and at an average of US$200, the retail price of an LTE USB dongle is twice an Indian’s monthly income on average. As LTE networks proliferate worldwide and more devices become available, costs will come down. Initiatives like the introduction of the low cost Aakash tablet in India are helping spur widespread access to the Internet in emerging markets, but more can be done.

“It is important that all citizens in India have access to high-speed Internet connectivity and the transformative opportunities it provides,” continued Bouverot. “The current average cost of an LTE device is prohibitive for the uptake of Mobile Broadband for those on low incomes. The GSMA is committed to working with its mobile operator members to investigate innovative ways in which to make access to the mobile Internet more affordable for all.”

The GSMA has also announced it has opened a permanent office in New Delhi and recently made two new hires: Sandeep Karanwal, head of GSMA’s India office, and Nitin Sapra, the GSMA’s manager for spectrum and regulation policy in India. Bouverot continued, “It is an exciting time to launch our new office, as India is an increasingly critical market for the mobile industry, both commercially and in policy terms, through its influence throughout Asia Pacific and the world.”

“India is taking great strides towards the uptake of data and already has the third largest Internet subscriber base in the world with more than 100 million users, and the second largest Facebook subscriber base in the world with 43 million users,” said Sanjay Kapoor, CEO - India & South Asia, Bharti Airtel. “Various studies have shown that a 10 per cent increase in mobile penetration could lead to 1 per cent increase in GDP, and a 10 per cent increase in Mobile Broadband penetration could deliver a 1.4 per cent increase in GDP. Along with 2G and 3G, when 4G is deployed, India will be at the forefront of cutting-edge Mobile Broadband provision globally. We are delighted to work with GSMA to help expedite this phenomenal growth and deliver Mobile Broadband to every corner of India.”

“To accelerate the adoption of Mobile Broadband across India, particularly in rural areas, we need to be able to provide our customers with affordable access to data services and devices. However, operators need more spectrum so that the mobile ecosystem can benefit from economies of scale, which will help us to provide affordable access to Mobile Broadband for those who need it most. We are happy to work with GSMA to help foster the affordability of Mobile Broadband for the benefit of our customers all across India,” said Marten Pieters, Managing Director and CEO, Vodafone India.