As per the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the volume of total wireless data usage stood at 54.92 billion GB till September 2019. This is higher than the data usage reported at 46.40 billion GB during full year 2018, and significantly higher when compared to data usage of 828 million GB during 2014. As per TRAI analysis, 46.41 billion GB data was used in 2018 and 20.09 billion GB in 2017.
Total number of wireless data subscribers increased from 281.58 million at the end of 2014 to 664.80 million at the end of September 2019.
As per the regulator, the last four years have witnessed unprecedented growth in wireless data usage for communication and entertainment. With the entry of a new telco using long term evolution (LTE)/4G technology and the subsequent gradual adaptation of this technology by the leading incumbents, data usage has grown by leaps and bounds, and it is expected to grow further in future also. Meanwhile, upgradation of mobile networks from 2G to 4G in large parts of the country along with the availability of smartphones at relatively affordable prices is driving the mobile internet subscriptions. Further, the content, not only in English and Hindi, but in regional languages also, is readily available at affordable prices to the consumers.