When many sectors slowed down due to global financial downturn, the Indian telecom industry has recorded a steady growth. In reality, it has been one of the major contributors to the growth of the Indian economy. The Indian telecom has the best penetration into the consumer market, covering both rural and urban India with unbeatable low tariffs, in turn contributing to the economic growth. In the year 2009, cell phone companies switched from per minute billing to per second billing and that says about the competitiveness in the mobile sector.
Half the people in India may not have proper sanitization, but still owns a mobile phone. A more accurate data reveals around 545 million people have mobile connection, and roughly 366 million people do not have proper toilet. Yet, the statistics or the real situation has not stopped her from becoming the largest mobile service provider, second only to China. The cell phone industry has changed the face of India. It has transformed the way people speak, and connect. From finding a job to hearing astrological predictions, from finding a house to paying your monthly bills, mobile technology has changed the way Indians talk, breathe and move.
In February 2010 alone there were 20 million new mobile connections. Even in rural India where there is not much money seen, mobile phones have come to be a permanent object in their hands.
The entry of 3G and WIMAX technologies opened opportunities in terms of employment and also with respect to bringing home revenues.
The rapid growth of the telecom industry has helped in contributing to the growth of India GDP. By 2010, there are 612 million people expected to get mobile subscriptions accounting for 51% Indian economic growth rate. It is expected to generate revenues close to USD 43 billion by the end of this year. And, that is no tall order for such a ubiquitous industry. Once this sort of revenue is generated in the industry, the Indian telecom sector will vie with Mexico which has produced one of the richest men in the world, the indomitable Carlos Slim Helu.