Assessing the impact of mobile broadband in India

The problem

The GSMA wanted to understand the benefits that mobile broadband could deliver to India.

India is a market that Analysys Mason covers extensively in its research and we also have extensive project experience, working with clients across the India telecoms, media and technology (TMT) sectors. As such, Analysys Mason was the first port of call for the GSMA when it was looking to commission a report on mobile broadband and build its understanding around the economic impact and influence from this technology. 

The solution

The primary focus of the study was to analyse the macro- and micro-economic impact (direct and indirect) of mobile broadband by studying its potential impact on specific industries and social sectors.

Using tried and tested methodologies, Analysys Mason evaluated the growth potential of mobile broadband in India from a demand-side perspective and generated growth scenarios by identifying supply-side constraints, such as spectrum availability.

The result

The exclusive findings of the Analysys Mason report reveal that allocating just 5MHz of additional 3G spectrum per licensee could increase mobile broadband penetration by more than 35%, which would increase the number of 3G users to almost 160 million by 2015. This would also increase national broadband penetration by 3.3%, resulting in an INR538 billion increase to India’s GDP by 2015. By this time, mobile broadband could contribute a total of INR2190 billion to the Indian economy.

Our report highlights the impact of increased mobile broadband penetration on a wide variety of industry sectors. These include the creation of new revenue streams in the consumer and retail, financial services, social services (such as education and healthcare), and other corporate/vertical sectors.

Findings also reveal the impact that broadband connectivity has on economic productivity across industry sectors and the benefits it will deliver to the Indian people.

Our study shows that the total cost of ownership for a fixed broadband connection accounts for at least 20% of spending per capita in India.

In addition to affordability issues, the deployment of large-scale fixed broadband access networks faces challenges in terms of time-to-market, operator economics and the nascent ecosystem.

Mobile broadband delivers the cost-effective scalability that India needs to overcome these issues.

The team

The Analysys Mason team members were able to call on their in-depth understanding of the Indian TMT market right across the value chain to develop a truly effective strategy for our client.

The team also drew on its considerable experience in developing telecoms strategy and business models for Indian businesses. Equally important was our knowledge of 3G and broadband launch issues, device service integration and data business models, as well as our understanding of adjacent technologies in both India and worldwide.

Crucially, the team working on the project had plenty of experience advising telecoms operators, network, device and infrastructure vendors, regulators and investors on long-term strategy development, business and corporate planning and investment options. This combination of knowledge and experience contributed to the strategy roadmap.