Mobile service revenue

The mobile service revenue in India has increased with the increasing digitization of the Indian economy, the government's push for digitalization and increasing smartphones and the rollout of 5G technology.

The total mobile services revenue in India is poised to increase at a compounded annual growth rate of 2.9% from $26.3 billion in 2022 to $30.3 billion in 2027, the growth is credited with the robust growth in mobile data services segment.

The telecom industry comprises the sales of telecom goods and services by companies (organizations, single proprietorships, and partnerships) that supply communication hardware equipment for the transmission of voice, data, text, and video. The telecoms market also includes the sales of items by manufacturers like GPS equipment, cellular phones, and switching equipment.

The Indian telecom market is segmented by services, which is further classified into voice services (wired, wireless), data & messaging services, and OTT and pay-TV. Secondly, the rollout of 5G technology is expected to provide a significant boost to mobile service revenue in India. With faster download speeds, lower latency, and greater bandwidth, 5G technology is expected to enable new applications and use cases that will drive revenue growth for mobile service providers.

A report of GlobalData on India Mobile Broadband Forecast reveals that the growth in mobile data service revenues will offset the decline in mobile voice service revenues during the forecast period. While the mobile voice service revenue will decline at a CAGR of 3.2% between 2022 and 2027, mobile data revenue will increase at a CAGR of 8% over the same period, primarily driven by the increasing adoption of higher ARPU 4G/5G services.

The average monthly mobile data usage in India is expected to increase from 16.4 GB in 2022 to 30.8 GB in 2027, driven by the growing consumption of online video and social media content over smartphones, due to the widespread availability of 4G services and increase in 5G services availability.

The report further states, about the country’s mobile broadband services outlook with 4G services leading the way, despite the recent rollout of 5G services. The continued expansion of 4G services by operators in rural areas, coupled with the government initiatives to take 4G services to all uncovered villages in the next five years will drive the demand for 4G services over the forecast period. Reliance Jio led the mobile services market in India in 2022, followed by Airtel India.

5G subscriptions, on the other hand, are estimated to increase at fastest growth over the forecast period and will go on to account for 45.4% share of the total mobile subscriptions in 2027, driven by the ongoing 5G network rollouts by operators and proliferation of 5G-enabled smartphones.

Dr. Deepak Kumar Sahu, President & CEO, VARINDIA