Info-tech

India remains region with highest usage per smartphone: Study

Our Burea Mumbai | Updated on June 16, 2020 Published on June 16, 2020

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India remains the region with highest data traffic per smartphone, recording 12 GB per month in 2019, and is poised to rise 33 per cent to 25 GB per month by 2025.

The total data traffic in the country is projected to triple to 21 EB per month in 2025, according to an Ericsson study.

In India, the average monthly mobile data usage per smartphone continues to show robust growth, boosted by the rapid adoption of 4G. Low prices for mobile broadband services, affordable smartphones and people’s changing video viewing habits have continued to drive monthly usage growth in the region.

The number of smartphone subscriptions increased to 620 million in 2019 and is expected to grow at a compounded Annual Growth Rate of nine per cent, reaching one billion by 2025. Around 410 million additional smartphone users are expected in India by 2025, according to the Ericsson Mobility Report.

In India, LTE remains the dominant technology, accounting for 49 per cent of mobile subscriptions in 2019. The technology will continue to be dominant, representing 64 per cent of mobile subscriptions in 2025. LTE subscriptions are forecast to increase from 550 million in 2019 to 820 million in 2025, increasing at a CAGR of seven per cent.

Mobile broadband technologies accounted for 58 per cent of mobile subscriptions in 2019, and this figure is predicted to reach 82 per cent by 2025. The total number of mobile broadband subscriptions is set to exceed one billion by 2025.

“5G will represent around 18 per cent of mobile subscriptions in India at the end of 2025,” said Patrik Cerwall, Head of Strategic Marketing Insights and Executive Editor of the Ericsson Mobility Report.

In India, the projected value of the 5G-enabled digitalisation revenues will be approximately $17 billion by 2030.

Nitin Bansal, Head of Network Solutions, South east Asia, Oceania and India, said:  “It is key to invest in 4G in India, to excel in 5G. Here, private networks represent a very important first step and fundamental to building a momentum in serving a wide array of 5G-enabled use cases. Mobile technology is an unmatched connectivity foundation for the digital transformation of any industry, and any product, anywhere in the world.”

Global numbers

The number of global 5G subscriptions is expected to top 190 million by the end of 2020 and 2.8 billion by the end of 2025, according to Ericsson.

While 5G subscription growth in some markets has slowed as a result of the pandemic, this is outweighed by other markets where it is accelerating. This has prompted Ericsson to raise its year-end 2020 forecast for global 5G subscriptions, the forecasts included in the June 2020 edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report said.

Published on June 16, 2020

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