Despite the slow start, 3G deployment has led to an increased demand for data services over the past 10-12 months. This has been primarily due to the high speed connectivity offered by this platform and the access to innovative applications and services offered by operators, vendors and content developers.

Apart from upgrading their infrastructure to accommodate 3G technology, operators have introduced relevant content and applications, smart services and phones, pocket-friendly data plans and education-cum-marketing exercises to encourage service uptake.

Content developers are offering various applications to the end-user on 3G-enabled handsets. For example, Getit Infoservice Limited has launched the GETIT search engine application, which enables users to search for a host of products and services on their handset. Today, 3G has made available a wide range of mobile-based services such as mobile office applications, virtual banking, home shopping, videoconferencing, rich multimedia with live audio and video streaming, e-mail, instant messaging with audio/video clips, easy access to social networking portals and online entertainment such as live mobile TV.

According to Frost & Sullivan, going forward, the industry is expected to see a shift in focus from astrology, Bollywood, cricket and devotion-centric applications to premium entertainment, and utility value-added services.

In terms of users, industry estimates predict that the number of 3G subscribers will increase at a compound annual growth rate of 88 per cent until 2014.

As per Frost & Sullivan, applications such as media-centric services, social networking-based applications, user-generated content, mobile games and video-conferencing services have caught on in India.

The company believes that media-centric applications are likely to become a key driver for the growth of the telecom sector in the near future. These applications would enable a user to view the news headlines on their mobile handsets, along with videos, clips, widgets, etc.

Social networking applications and user-generated content have also gained ground, given the exponential increase in the use of such websites over the past three to four years. The firm believes that applications that enable easy and innovative social networking are likely to become a strong value proposition. User-generated content like videos and blogs have also started becoming popular. Moreover, games based on movies and cricket are a key revenue generator for service providers.

Apart from these, the following applications are likely to make a huge impact in the market, according to a joint report by KPMG and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry...

m-banking: The Indian banking sector has grown significantly over the years. However, as per the Reserve Bank of India’s estimates, 40 per cent of the country’s population lacks access to formal financial institutions and is, therefore, largely unbanked. Mobile phones have the potential to deliver financial services to this unbanked population through m-banking. Driven by progressive banking regulations, m-banking services are gaining momentum in India.

m-education: In order to facilitate the rural population’s access to affordable basic education, the central government, along with private education players, plans to leverage wireless technology and offer m-education services such as basic education lessons, exam tips and result alerts.

m-governance: Basic governance services delivered through mobile phones can help facilitate the public service delivery chain mechanism. The extensive reach of mobile phones, coupled with the potential of mobile applications, will make m-governance a cornerstone of various state government schemes.

m-health: Mobile devices can be used for collecting health data; delivering healthcare information to practitioners, researchers and patients; and monitoring patients in real time. M-health is expected to contribute significantly in providing basic healthcare services to the remotest parts of the country.

m-agriculture: Wireless technology can be leveraged to disseminate important agriculture-related information to farmers. This includes basic information such as weather forecasts and crop advisory services, and complex machine-to-machine automation services that increase farm productivity. Apart from facilitating information access, m-agriculture would play an important role in overcoming infrastructural constraints and supply chain inefficiencies in the agricultural sector.

Location-based services: These services use the knowledge of the geographical position of a mobile device to generate relevant information for the subscriber and the service provider alike. Navigation assistance, emergency or disaster relief, social networking and map assistance are examples of location-based services that benefit users.

Machine-to-machine applications: These include services such as fleet management, smart metering as well as agro and irrigation monitoring. These can be used in urban and rural markets, and across the customer and enterprise segments. Although these services are at a nascent stage in India, they are expected to play an important part in the information revolution.

Going forward, data services on the 3G platform are expected to witness significant uptake. Consumer behaviour will further drive the penetration of these applications and services.