India has reached the one billion users mark as per data released by the country’s telecom regulator. According to a Bloomberg report, the second most populous country in the world now has 1.03 billion mobile phone subscribers. China, the most populous country, maintains at the top of the heap in terms of total subscribers. India has around a dozen mobile carriers fighting for dominance, the largest of which (Bharti Airtel) has over 200 million users. In comparison, the biggest American carrier, Verizon Wireless, has around 137.5 million subscribers.
Expert see that the milestone is just a beginning of some dramatic action rather as a climax. “A big chunk of these billion mobile subscribers will become smartphone users in the next couple of years, that is the thrilling next wave,” said Amresh Nandan, a research director at Gartner India. “From here on, it will be about exploding growth in data usage and internet access through the mobile, which will get millions of Indians conducting business, getting social and participating in governance through their phones,” he said.
