A new study shows that India is on its way to having more than 1 billion smartphone users by the year 2026. The upsurge in the number of users is being speculated because of the rising sales of smartphones in the rural areas of the country. India at the end of the year 2021 had 1.2 billion mobile users out of which 750 million were smartphone subscribers. Moreover, India is also expected to be the second-largest smartphone manufacturer across the globe in the coming five years.
Increasing Smartphone Demand in Rural Sector
According to a report from PTI, Deloitte’s 2022 Global TMT predictions suggest that the Indian smartphone market is expected to reach 1 billion smartphone users by 2026. The rural sector is growing at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 6% and is going to be the biggest reason behind the increase in the number of users as compared to the urban sector which growing at 2.5% from 2021 to 2026. The study states that the need for the internet is anticipated to result in increased demands for smartphones. The need to adopt fintech, e-learning, e-health will fuel the demand for smartphones in the country. The Deloitte study also predicts that urban areas will witness 95% replacements for new smartphones while only 5% towards pre-owned smartphones in 2026 as compared to 75% and 25% respectively in 2021. Similarly, rural areas are also expected to witness 80% replacement towards new smartphones with only 20% towards pre-owned phones in 2026. Moreover, the replacement of feature phones with smartphones will also witness a gradual decrease with the increased number of smartphone users. The study suggests that feature phone replacements will come down to 60 million in 2026 from 72 million in 2021 in urban areas and 71 million in rural areas. The increase in demand for smartphones will also be highly propelled by the introduction of the 5G network which according to the study will alone contribute to about 80% of devices by 2026. The study says that starting from 2022, 5G consumption will witness a year-on-year growth resulting in increased sales of 5G smartphones in India. It is also anticipated that introduction of 5G in the country and the ever-evolving digital ecosystem, 3G mobile network is most likely to become a thing in the past.
