At the end of 2026, 5G is estimated at approximately 330 million subscriptions representing around 26 percent of mobile subscribers in India, according to a latest report by Ericsson. Headquartered in Stockholm, Ericsson is a globally recognized networking and telecommunications company, released a report titled 'Mobility Report 2021' that carries research about the penetration of 5G across regions worldwide.

Regarding India, the report indicates that the country still has the second highest average data consumption per smartphone in the world at 14.6 GB per month. Since the number of smartphone subscriptions was already 810 million which is projected to reach a CAGR of seven percent reaching over 1.2 billion by 2026.

Ericsson India, head of Network Solutions for the South East Asia Market Area and Nitin Bansal, stated that 42 percent of users in Indian mega or metro cities who use 4G as the only home connection to their internet are interested in 5G fixed wireless connection.

The report sets the 5G subscription figures at 3.5 billion by 2026, representing roughly 40percent of all mobile subscriptions.

In India, 50 percent of consumers are willing to pay 50 percent more for 5G with bundled digital services, compared to only 10 percent more for 5G connectivity. When 5G becomes available, 40 million people could use it in the first year, Bansal noted.

Smartphone subscriptions accounted for 72 percent of all mobile subscriptions in 2020 and are expected to reach over 98 percent in 2026, according to the country's fast smartphone adoption.

According to Ericsson Mobility Report (EMR) Editor Patrik Cerwall, traffic growth might vary dramatically between years and between countries, depending on local market conditions.

"In India, data usage is really high since people use smartphones to work from home, and smartphone penetration is also quite high," Cerwall explained.

South East Asia and Oceania, as well as India, have seen their projections raised, with India continuing to have one of the highest monthly smartphone usage rates, at roughly 15 GB by the end of 2020.

"The average traffic per smartphone in India is currently the second highest in the world, and is expected to reach over 40 GB per month by 2026. Monthly usage growth in the region is fueled by service providers' competitive pricing for subscription packages, affordable smartphones, and increasing time spent online", as per the report.

In India, total mobile data traffic increased from 6.9 exabytes (EB) per month in 2010 to 9.5 EB per month in 2020, and is expected to climb by more than fourfold by 2026, reaching 41 EB per month.

"4G subscribers in India are expected to increase from 680 million in 2020 to 830 million in 2026. By the end of 2026, 5G will account for roughly 26percent of all mobile subscriptions in India, with an estimated 330 million subscriptions" the report highlighted.