India’s 5G smartphone shipments to overtake 4G shipments by 2023

BENGALURU, Dec 29 (Reuters) – India’s 5G smartphone shipments will overtake 4G by the end of next year, driven by mass adoption of the high-speed network and rising sales of low-cost phones. market research firm Counterpoint said on Thursday.

While India’s overall smartphone shipments are estimated to decline year-on-year this year due to component supply issues and macroeconomic factors, 5G will continue to drive smartphone demand well into 2023, Counterpoint added.

5G data speeds in India are expected to be around 10 times faster than 4G, with the network seen as vital to emerging technologies such as self-driving cars and artificial intelligence.

The share of 5G phones in the low price range (less than 20,000 rupees or $241.55) is expected to grow to 30% in 2023 from 4% last year, Counterpoint said.

Indian telecom major Reliance ( RELI.NS ) is working with Alphabet Inc’s ( GOOGL.O ) Google to launch a budget 5G smartphone after it emerged as the biggest spender of India’s $19 billion worth of 5G spectrum in August in the auction held.

Cumulative shipments of 5G smartphones will cross the 100 million mark in the second quarter of 2023 and surpass 4G smartphone shipments by the end of next year, according to Counterpoint.

The analyst firm expects constraints such as component supply shortages, inflation, geopolitical conflicts and limited availability of 5G networks to ease by the end of 2023, leading to mass adoption of 5G.

Meanwhile, India’s government is trying to push Apple, Samsung and other cellphone makers to prioritize software upgrades to support 5G in the country, as many models are not ready for the recently launched high-speed service, Reuters reports. :

($1 = 82.7970 Indian Rupees)

Reporting by Meenakshi Maidas in Bengaluru; Editing by Eileen Soreng

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