Mobile data traffic in the country has risen 3.2 times over the last five years as the pan-India data usage per month grew from 4.5 exabytes in 2018 to 14.4 exabytes in 2022. An Indian on average used 19.5 GB data per month in 2022, Nokia said in its annual Mobile Broadband India Traffic Index (MBiT) report released on Thursday.
Nokia's report included many key takeaways about the evolution of the Indian mobile market, including mobile data consumption and growth, the ongoing transition from 4G to 5G as well as the prospects for enterprise adoption of the fifth-generation mobile system (5G) with private networks.
Further findings point to increased mobile data consumption, coinciding with the launch of commercial 5G services in the country in October 2022, as Communication Service Providers (CSPs) deploy 5G networks and expand to newer areas quickly. According to the report, 4G and 5G subscribers together now account for almost 100 per cent of the total mobile data traffic in the country.
In addition, average data consumption per user has risen sharply since 2018, reaching 19.5 gigabyte (GB) per user per month in 2022 - this is equivalent to 6,600 songs. At an aggregate level, the total mobile data consumed in India is expected to more than double by 2024. According to the report, over 70 million 5G devices were estimated to have been shipped to India in 2022, indicating strong traction for 5G in the market.
MBiT 2023 highlighted a significant acceleration in enterprise investment. The report said enterprise spending on private 5G networks will be driven by new use cases in diverse industry verticals, including manufacturing, utilities, transportation and healthcare among others in India. India's investment in private wireless networks is expected to reach around USD 250 million by 2027.
Sanjay Malik, Senior Vice-President and Head of the India Market, Nokia, said, "India has seen a massive uptake of mobile broadband based on successful deployment of 4G LTE (Long-Term Evolution) networks. We believe that 5G will take mobile broadband consumption to the next level in India by enabling new digital use cases for both consumer and enterprise segments.
Malik said it was essential that this growth is managed in a sustainable manner while supporting India's aim to become a trillion-dollar digital economy.
( With inputs from ANI )
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