Having fast connectivity is something millions of smartphone users are expecting. India is yet to roll out 5G services and many users are keenly waiting for it. Now whenever it is introduced in India for users, it is expected that around 40 million users will switch to 5G within the first year of its launch. The predictions have been made in a research conducted by Ericsson where the company has studied the impact of 5G on existing smartphone users across countries and what users expect the technology to deliver in the future.
Nitin Bansal, Head of Ericsson India and Head of Network Solutions Ericsson South East Asia, Oceania & India, said that the Ericsson Consumer Lab study has some interesting insights. With some Indian Service Providers already under preparation for 5G support, “at least 40 million smartphone users in India could take up 5G in the first year of 5G being made available.” Apart from this, the report showed Indian consumers are willing to pay as much as 50 per cent more for 5G plans that come with digital services, when compared to the 10 per cent premium for 5G connectivity.
Apart from this, the Ericsson report has indicated that 67 per cent of users have expressed an intention in upgrading their network to 5G, which is a 14 percentage points increase from 2019. With this, India has most users willing to switch to 5G services. Among the 10 early adopters of the technology, 7 expect to have higher speeds than 4G. On the other hand, 6 of 10 users expect some “pricing innovation from Communication Service Providers like 5G data sharing between family members or across devices.”
The smartphone users in India who are 5G ready have been spending more time on enhanced video and multiplayer mobile gaming. “Consumers predict spending 7.5-8 hours/ week on XR apps by 2025,” the report noted.
