Mobile services market in India to reach $ 21.4 bn in 2015: Gartner

Riding on exponential growth of mobile users in the country, mobile connections in India is expected to grow by five per cent this year, said a Gartner report. Mobile connections will increase from 837 million connections in 2014 to 880 million.

The report said the year will also see spending on mobile services increasing four per cent to $ 21.4 billion.

Driven by increasing use of data-centric cellular services such as tablets and notebooks, data services is expected to grow 15 per cent to touch $6.5 million in 2015. Mobile services is driven by data services.

"In India, the rise in spending on data-only connections will be driven by two user scenarios - first, to complement their fixed broadband connectivity, so they can use their larger-screen data-centric devices on the go. In other use cases, data-only connections will be the way for consumers to access broadband connectivity because of a lack of fixed networks," said Neha Gupta, senior research analyst at Gartner.

Newer and faster networks coupled with a rise in the number of users of these networks will help to increase spending on data services. With Airtel rolling out 4G services across India and Reliance Jio's mobile and data services to be launched by September-end, the mobile services network is poised for a huge competition. However, how much can this be benficial to the consumers is something that's not yet known.

Also, smartphone manufacturers are increasingly introducing smartphones in the affordable range. Chinese makers like Xiaomi, One Plus, Lenovo, Motorola and Indian players like Micromax have replaced giants like Samsung and Sony in the India.

Spending on data services will also be heavily driven by mobile apps, particularly mobile video apps. Apps and content are driving traffic volume as people increasingly chat to friends and family, watch videos on the move, and listen to streamed music.

"Mobile data provides a substantial revenue opportunity in India. Communication service providers (CSPs) will need to focus on creating new pricing, with a focus on data access, such as shared plans. They will also need to refine the services they already provide, with a focus on creating richer, more immersive and more personalized experiences, to increase their customer numbers," said Ms. Gupta.

However, the growing mobile app market has a word of caution for app developers. They will have to sharpen their focus on the marketing and transparency of their apps, in order to retain customers. Gartner's research indicates that although affluent individuals and traditional early adopters are the leading users of new technologies and devices, younger, less wealthy people make greater use of mobile apps. This younger population's greater acceptance of apps and mobile content will require app developers to adjust their techniques to address the differences between user groups.