India Ready for 5G Network, says Global Survey Report (Image: x.com/EricssonIndia)The 4G subscribers to the tune of 31 million, could be expected to upgrade to 5G network in the last three months of 2023. The 50 percent subscribers who want to make the jump to 5G are willing to spend only less than Rs.20K, the Ericsson Consumer Lab which has released its report on ‘5G value: Turning performance into loyalty,’ said. The global report is on what drives 5G network satisfaction and user retention. The report touches upon the 5G satisfaction levels of Indian customers and the opportunity that 5G brings in to the Indian market.
As per the report, the 5G users of India, on an average spends more time – spends two hours more per week than the early adopters of the 5G markets, as US, United Kingdom, South Korea, China and many others. The Indian users extended usage, the report said, can be attributed to the “high daily engagement with apps, such as streaming HD video, video calling services, mobile gaming and augmented reality.”
The increase in the download speed has a key role in the satisfaction level of subscribers in the Indian market, with a notable 13 percent higher share of satisfied 5G subscribers as compared to markets which adopted 5G earlier. On the whole, there is a user satisfaction of 30 percent in the shift from 4G to 5G.
The report said, “India’s 5G satisfaction levels and perceived 5G availability match or surpass those in early adopter markets. India boasts a remarkable 13 percent higher share of very satisfied 5G users compared to the early adopter market average. Overall satisfaction increases by a substantial 30 percent when transitioning from 4G to 5G, with higher download speeds playing a key role in driving this satisfaction”
For now, the telecommunication companies are still to raise the 5G tariffs, with 39 percent of subscribers ready to shell out more for higher volumes of data availability, believing its justifiable. In India, 13 percent of subscribers are to receive signals for 5G, even when they own a 5G capable phone and on the other side, 27 percent of subscribers in the country has phones compatible with 5G as well as has access to 5G network.
The findings underline the potential for 5G adoption in India. Jasmeet Sethi, Head of Ericsson ConsumerLab, said that “with a substantial portion of the population ready for 5G, the opportunities for innovation and growth in the Indian market are immense. Even as app experience is emerging as a key factor in driving satisfaction with 5G, 5G has elevated the overall network satisfaction in India by an impressive 30% compared to 4G.”
Ericsson’s is launching an advanced and more energy efficient portfolio in India, which will “enable the country to meet the capacity and performance requirements of the networks in India,” Nitin Bansal, Head of Ericsson India and Head of Network Solutions, South- east Asia, Oceania and India, Ericsson said. He added that “given the rapid 5G adoption in India, the growing data traffic and the launch of FWA offers by service providers, we expect mmWave to be the foundation for the next wave of 5G growth the country.”
Ericsson’s study is based on 1.5 billion consumers across 28 global markets and in India, it is based on the views of ‘50 million 5G users and 250 million consumers across tier 1-3 cities.’ At a global level, interviews of 10,000 5G users were undertaken, which makes it 650 million 5G users in the worldwide scene. Currently Reliance Jio and Airtel are the major telecoms that offer 5G.