Mobile handset market in India is expected to touch the 300 million-unit mark (30 crores) in the year 2019. The country is the second largest global market for handsets after the giant manufacturer, China which has 400 million units of handsets. India’s handset market has been growing at a double-digit rate from the year 2012 to 2018. India overtook the United States to become the second largest market of smartphones manufacturer. However, the growth is expected to come down in 2019 at 3.4 percent given the saturation in the feature-phone industry. The only hope for the feature-phone industry comes from smart feature-phone which offer access to internet. As per reports, the Jio feature phone is set to bag 18 percent of the local handset market.
The smartphone market is expected to grow at a faster rate in 2019. Moreover, the market grew by 10 percent between 2016 and 2018 and is expected to grow at 11 percent in 2019. The top three smartphone markets are US, China, and India with above 100 million units. The new technological innovations are expected to drive the demand of smartphones. The analysts expect that new demands will primarily come from old users who will be lured to upgrade handsets with new features and technologies. “The onset of 5G services will spur the next mobile revolution in India. We see robust growth in the smartphone market. We will continue to maintain optimum balance in offline and online platforms to ensure the presence and adequate product availability across the country”, said Nipun Marya, director of the brand strategy at Vivo India.
Moreover, in 2014, there were only 2 manufacturing units in India but since the launch of ‘Made in India’ initiative in 2015, the number has increased to 123 units in 2017. “Most global handset brands and manufacturers are eyeing India, which is the world’s fastest growing Smartphone market, having overtaken the US last year to become the world’s second largest Smartphone market after China,” ICEA chairman & national president, Pankaj Mohindroo, said in a media statement.
A few months back Samsung opened one of the biggest handset manufacturing units in Noida, Uttar Pradesh to produce 120 million phones per year. Chinese smartphone giant, Vivo is all set to establish its second manufacturing facility in India with an investment of Rs 4,000 crore in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh. The government has also decided to promote domestic manufacturing of major appliances like refrigerators, water coolers, microwave ovens, washing machines, dishwashers, and air conditioners. These goods are also called white goods and this industry is of worth more than 30,000 crores.
India has been providing a good ecosystem for software industries but still has to put efforts in the hardware sector. As per National Policy on Electronics-2018, electronics manufacturing clusters will be promoted by the government and it will help the country to grow on the hardware front as well. Once the country starts manufacturing semiconductors, mobile phones etc, it would have an option to integrate its expertise in both the sectors to develop a new range of products.