India to have 180 million smartphones by 2019

A recent Assocham-KPMG study predicated India’s global market share to be 13.5 per cent with 180 million units by the end of 2019.

The study pointed out that cheaper mobile data packages combined with affordable smartphones has been one of the reasons driving the smartphone market in India, which currently stands at 7.6 per cent of the global smartphone market.  

However, industry body Assocham expected India’s global standing to shoot up to 13.5 per cent by the end of 2019.

It also attributed this growth to the intrusion of cheap smartphones—Rs 3,000-10,000—in the market due to the large number of local manufacturers in the country.

Smartphone sales have been growing steadily as it accounted for 38 per cent (11.40 crore) of total handset sales (30 crore) in 2015. It is further pegged to touch 50 per cent by 2020.

With urban smartphones sales reaching a point of culmination, the smartphone makers have decided to aggressively make their presence felt across rural India. The growth of the smartphone industry in India over the past five years has been no less than miraculous, the study added.

The study also highlighted that in the first two quarters of 2016, India successfully manufactured 11 crore handsets worth Rs 54,000 crore—a YOY growth of 83 per cent in terms of volume and close to 200 per cent in value terms.

In such favourable market conditions, domestic manufacturers should try and make the most as the study also predicted massive growth opportunities for local players.

Favourable e-commerce environment and deeper internet penetration are two other main reason why India could become further expand its smartphone market to become the top smartphone selling market in the world.