India’s Pioneering Role in GSMA’s Mobile Economy Asia Pacific and 5G Expansion

GSMA’s Mobile Economy Asia Pacific Report Insights

NEW DELHI: GSMA’s Mobile Economy Asia Pacific 2024 report reveals that India can lead the world’s second wave of 5G deployment for significant economic gains across industries like manufacturing and fintech. By the decade’s end, the report anticipates that nearly half of India’s population (49%) will embrace this transformative technology.

Advancements in 5G Technology

India's 5G deployment is accelerating rapidly, with the country among the seven leaders in Asia-Pacific driving commercial rollout of standalone (SA) networks. This rapid advancement is fostering innovation within India’s developer community, particularly concerning new 5G mobile applications.

Government’s Vision

• Julian Gorman, head of Asia-Pacific at GSMA, states, “India already holds the third-largest 5G user base globally and is poised to become a top telecom superpower by the decade's end.”
• The government's digital transformation ambition is essential for achieving its goal of becoming the world's third-largest economy by 2030.

Smartphone Market Dynamics

India boasts over 1.2 billion smartphone connections, ranking it among the top three smartphone markets in Asia-Pacific. By 2030, smartphone adoption is expected to reach 95%.

Leading in IoT and 5G Capabilities

Notably, Jio has deployed more than one million 5G cell sites, implementing network slicing to cater to gaming, high-security services, and fixed wireless access. The Mobile Economy report forecasts India will head the licensed cellular Internet of Things market, projected to double in size by 2030 with a 9% annual growth rate.