Data Summary
The rural youth mobile market in India is valued at $1.5 billion. It grew by 54% in 2009 alone. 95 million rural mobile subscribers hail from rural India. 150 million mobile youth will come from rural India in 2012.
[stextbox id="custom" caption="Premium Content" image="http://www.mobileyouth.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/icon-lock.png" collapsed=false]
[/stextbox]
[table id=1 /]
[stextbox id="custom" caption="Regional Trends Map" collapsed="false"][geo_mashup_map map_content="global" height=300 width=100% zoom=4 enable_scroll_wheel_zoom=true auto_info_open=false map_cat=1053][/stextbox]
Background Article
Key Facts
- There are 95 million youth mobile subscribers in rural India. This number is expected to grow beyond 150 million by 2012.
- In 2010, 40% of India’s youth mobile owners will come from rural areas. The growth potential in rural areas lies among smaller villages with less than 1000 people.
- Recommendations from family, friends, colleagues and neighbors is the most trusted source of information when it comes to choosing handsets and operators
Article
Rural India has joined the global mobile market. In 2010, 34% of India’s youth mobile owners will come from rural areas. The rural youth market will grow by 34% in 2010 while the metro affluent market will decrease by 6%. Growth in rural markets is mainly driven by introduction of cheaper handsets by manufacturers and more affordable plans by service providers. Vodafone and Nokia have already announced the launch of the ultra-cheap phone for rural markets priced well below INR 1000. India’s rural youth market is the next frontier for both mobile operators and manufacturers. Already, VAS provider IMImobile has teamed up with Airtel to roll out a new packaged VAS service called ‘Cell Shakti’ aimed solely at rural mobile users in India. The service enables rural consumers to access information regarding local prices (Mandi Bhav), weather, healthcare, education and other basic law and order. To tackle the low literacy rate of rural India, the service is designed to be completely voice based. The charge of using the service is a minimal INR 1 per day.
Nokia’s Life Tools service is another mobile service aimed at rural consumers in India. The tool enables consumers to get up-to-date, locally relevant information regarding agriculture, education and entertainment delivered straight to their mobile phones in local languages. Watch how the service has been used by farmers in Maharastra, India to empower themselves with most recent price information on their produce.
Among rural consumers, recommendation from family, friends, colleagues and neighbors is the most trusted source of information when it comes to choosing handsets and operators. Television ranks third behind Mobile showrooms. However, young consumers in rural parts are more susceptible to the aspirational values propagated by brands through TV, print and radio campaigns.
[stextbox id="custom" caption="More charts available from India" collapsed="false"][catlist id=1063,-1086 orderby=name asc numberposts=10 excerpt=yes][/stextbox]
Free Download: 100 Key Trends in Youth Mobile Culture
Sign up to the mobileYouth newsletter and you will also get the 4 Part PDF Free (Note: each section is full-color, high resolution, 9MB in size). Our trends newsletter delivers the latest insights straight to your email box. Written every week by our resident best-selling mobileYouth authors. Never miss a trend in youth mobile culture again. Unsubscribe any time.
