Digital Landscape in India

PROSPECTS

Cheap data plans will drive mobile internet coverage

The availability of cheap and fast mobile data plans has surged since Reliance Jio launched sevices in 2016. The company has spread its network not just in large cities but also in many smaller towns and has witnessed a sharp increase in its subscriptions.

BharatNet will improve fixed broadband penetration in rural areas

Fixed broadband penetration has traditionally been very low in India primarily because of the country’s poor fixed line connectivity. Underinvestment in fixed line networks by the state-owned incumbent Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), costly plans and patchy services across much of the country’s small towns and rural areas have resulted in poor fixed broadband connectivity.

5G networks will be delayed due to infrastructure and financial constraints

Global mobile networks are becoming more sophisticated, with plans for commercial 5G launches gaining steam. Countries such as South Korea, Japan and the US are at the forefront of 5G and will commercialise services in 2019 or 2020 given that 5G-compatible handsets are expected to be introduced in 2019.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Reliance Jio provides stiff competition to Airtel and Vodafone Idea

Since starting operations in 2016, Reliance Jio has transformed the Indian mobile broadband space through its affordable data plans and extensive network coverage that extends into smaller towns and rural areas. Indians have benefited from the competition in the market as 4G LTE coverage has improved in a market that was known for its slow and expensive internet a few years earlier.

State-owned BSNL operates in a declining fixed line segment

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is the state-owned incumbent telecom operator and the largest player in the fixed line space. A few decades earlier, the company enjoyed monopoly status in the country before the telecom sector was opened up to domestic and foreign private investors in the 1990s.

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