Mobile data traffic in India to grow 5 times by 2023: Ericsson report
New Delhi, June 12 : With exponential rise in smartphone subscriptions and LTE/4G becoming the most dominant technology by 2023, the total mobile data traffic per month in India is set to grow five times in the next five years, according to an Ericsson report on Tuesday.
The boost in mobile data traffic growth could also be due to commercial rollout of 5G during this period, although Ericsson projects that the 5G subscriptions will become available in India from 2022.
North America is expected to lead the 5G uptake, with all major US operators planning to roll out 5G between late 2018 and mid-2019, said the 14th edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report that provides projections and analyses of the latest trends in the mobile industry.
The report estimates that the monthly data usage per smartphone (GB/month) in India will increase from 5.7 GB in 2017 to 13.7 GB by 2023.
"Overall, we see an increase in smartphones and LTE/4G becoming the dominant technology in the world, as seen in the end of 2017. It is growing very fast, and this change will also be seen in India," Patrik Cerwall, Executive Editor - Ericsson Mobility Report, told IANS in an interview.
"India has been a country where we have seen GSM being the majority of all subscriptions, as around 60 per cent users right now are still on GSM network. By 2023, LTE is going to account for 80 per cent of total subscriptions in India," said Cerwall, who is also the Head of Strategic Marketing, Business Area Networks at Ericsson.
In 2017, LTE subscriptions in India stood at 20 per cent.
With the addition of 16 million mobile subscriptions, India also saw the second highest number of net mobile subscription additions by country in the first quarter of 2018, the report said.
The total smartphone subscriptions in the country will grow 2.5 times to cross 975 million by 2023, acording to the report.
By end of 2023, close to 50 per cent of all mobile subscriptions in North America are forecast to be for 5G. Globally, major 5G deployments are expected from 2020.
Ericsson forecasts over one billion 5G subscriptions for enhanced mobile broadband by the end of 2023, accounting for around 12 per cent of all mobile subscriptions.
Larger than previously forecast deployments of cellular IoT (Internet of Things) is another focal point in the latest edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report.
The forecast for cellular IoT connections has nearly doubled since November 2017.
It is now expected to reach an estimated 3.5 billion in 2023, driven by ongoing large-scale deployments in China.
New massive IoT cellular technologies such as NB-IoT and Cat-M1 are fuelling this growth, giving service providers opportunities to improve efficiencies and enhance customer value, the report said.
Cellular IoT connections are also forecast to grow in a big way in India by 2023.
"We also see IoT picking up in a big way with cellular IoT connections in India to reach 72 million by 2023 growing at a CAGR of 25 per cent," said Nitin Bansal, Head of Network Solutions for the Market Area South East Asia, Oceania and India for Ericsson.
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NITI Aayog's MMR blueprint a ploy to separate Mumbai from Maharashtra: Uddhav Thackeray
Mumbai, Nov 17: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday alleged that the NITI Aayog's blueprint to develop the metropolitan region was a ploy to separate Mumbai from Maharashtra by undermining the BMC's importance.
If voted to power, the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) will scrap the MoU signed between the World Economic Forum (WEF) and MMRDA as it is aimed at diminishing the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's importance, he said.
Addressing a rally at the BKC ground in Mumbai on the penultimate day before the campaigning for the assembly elections concluded, Thackeray said he wouldn't hesitate to disband the MMRDA (Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority) if it encroaches on the BMC's jurisdiction.
"A conspiracy to separate Mumbai from Maharashtra is not just a loose talk but an impending serious crisis. The ploy is real but we will never allow this to happen," he said.
Thackeray said the MMRDA and WEF signed an agreement in September to develop MMR (Mumbai Metropolitan Region) as a global economic hub which was signed after Niti Aayog's report on MMR development.
"The Niti Aayog's blueprint diminishes the importance of the Mumbai civic body which is a ploy to separate Mumbai from Maharashtra," he alleged.
Thackeray said the first decision of the MVA government will be to scrap policies of the (Mahayuti) government which handed over Mumbai's land to the Adani group.
The former chief minister said he was "not anti-development but is anti-destruction".
Thackeray claimed the MVA government headed by him was toppled (in June 2022) and Shiv Sena split because he had not allowed the looting of Maharashtra.
In an apparent reference to the Shiv Sena MLAs' disqualification case in the Supreme Court, saying, "The courts haven't given me justice. I seek justice from you for the sake of Maharashtra".
Thackeray said the BJP had to construct the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, who had banned RSS, in Gujarat and seek votes in Maharashtra in Balasaheb Thackeray's name, which he said was "revenge of time".
Attacking PM Narendra Modi over the "Ek hai to Safe Hai" slogan, Thackeray said if people feel unsafe while Modi is at the helm then he should resign.
"Only corrupt and traitors feel safe when Modi is around," he alleged.
Thackeray said Maharashtra was facing a grave crisis as "airports, ports, electricity, mines, and schools are being handed over to Adani".
Urging people to support the MVA, Thackeray said Maharashtra will be destroyed if the Mahayuti returns to power.
Thackeray recalled Shiv Sena's support for the abrogation of Article 370 and Bal Thackeray sheltering Kashmiri pandits fleeing persecution.
"Amit Shah and Narendra Modi weren't known to the world at that time," he said.
Targeting the BJP over its poll campaign, he said the scrapping of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir doesn't impact Minimum Support Price, unemployment, and women's security in Maharashtra.
He said people of Gujarat should realise that Modi and Amit Shah have created a barrier between the western state and the rest of the country.
"How can they move projects from Maharashtra to Gujarat? You should stop them," he added.
