According to a report by Opensignal, India could see a relatively rapid uptake of 5G services as compared to many other markets, once 5G is commercially launched. Telecom operators could also quickly gain 5G subscribers by strategically rolling out services in cities/circles with higher proportions of users that already own 5G-capable smartphones.
As per the report, India already has a large addressable market for 5G as about 9.7 per cent of smartphones in use in India are 5G-capable, meaning that 5G uptake could explode very quickly as these users do not need to buy new smartphones to be able to take advantage of 5G services. Also, users of these high-specification devices experience 40.8 per cent faster download speeds, on average than non-5G devices. However, these experiences vary significantly at the licensed service areas (LSA) and city levels.
Further, data from Opensignal reveals that Andhra Pradesh has the greatest number of 5G smartphone models, representing 14 per cent of all 5G-capable smartphones in the country, followed by Bihar (9.3 per cent), Maharashtra (8.5 per cent) and Gujarat (7.7 per cent). Meanwhile, Delhi is the first metro circle to appear on the list, in the seventh slot, with 6.7 per cent — 0.5 percentage points behind category B circles of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh (West), and Karnataka, all three have 5.3-5.9 per cent 5G capable smartphones in India. On the other hand, Mumbai and Kolkata Metro circles are further behind with 3.6 per cent and 1.2 per cent of smartphones available in India, respectively.
