According to a new Wireless Intelligence study, the number of 3G subscriber connections in India will grow three-fold between 2011 and 2015 to reach 400 million or about 30% of the country’s total.
Indian operators spent a combined $15 billion in acquiring WCDMA 3G spectrum at auction last year and are forecast to invest a further $2.5 billion in building the new networks and rolling out 3G services during this year. In addition to the two state-owned operators — BSNL and MTNL — which had already been awarded 3G airwaves ahead of the private auctions, seven companies acquired 3G spectrum at the auction.
The study goes on suggesting that over 80% of 3G connections will be based on WCDMA in five years, with the remaining 20% on CDMA-based 3G networks. Moreover, it is said that all new WCDMA-based operators will have launched services by June 2011, and by 2015 = 3G market shares will more closely resemble the overall national picture (see the image above).
India’s Circle A and Circle B service areas will account for 75% of the country’s 3G connections by 2015. The initial 3G rollouts are concentrated on the metro areas with the next phase to include more populous regions such as Punjab, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh and Haryana.
The situation, however, is complicated by the fact that no 3G operator is able to offer a nationwide service, which will require network sharing and roaming between operators. Additionally, pricing 3G services in a market where around 200 million prospective users live on less than $2 a day is also set to be a major challenge…