Growing market traction of 3G wireless devices in India is likely to spur growth of Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM), the largest developer of digital mobile chipsets based on CDMA wireless technology. At present, India has more than 100 million CDMA wireless subscribers, out of which half a million are 3G subscribers.
Currently, Reliance Communications and Tata DoCoMo, a joint venture between Tata Teleservices (TCL) and NTT DoCoMo (DCM) are the two main CDMA service providers in India. In addition, the state-run BSNL, the largest telecom operator in the country and Sistema-Shyam Teleservices are also opting for CDMA2000.
Ministry of Telecommunication of the Indian Government is exploring several options to auction the available spectrum for next-generation high-speed 3G networks. While Reliance Communications and Tata DoCoMo have deployed 3G EV-DO networks using their existing spectrum in 800 Mhz band, BSNL is rolling out 3G HSPA networks in 40 cities.
Subscribers of Reliance Communications and Tata DoCoMo can access 3G data services on USB cards. Various industry estimates predict that more than one million 3G wireless devices are likely to be shipped to India during fiscal 2009. Qualcomm, in collaboration with its channel sales partners, is trying to make available 3G data cards and dongles at affordable prices to the cost-conscious Indian customers.
India is also likely to become the first country to deploy the Open Market Handset (OMH) policy for the CDMA mobile industry. A long-standing problem of the CDMA industry is the lack of variety of handsets to be selected by end users. OMH policy is aimed at solving this issue. After the implementation of this policy, consumers will have access to a large range of handsets and better choice in buying devices.
Read the full analyst report on “QCOM”
Read the full analyst report on “TCL”
Read the full analyst report on “DCM”
Zacks Investment Research
