India to overtake US as 2nd largest 4G phone base: Report

Explosive growth in data usage, driven by attractive offers from operators like Reliance Jio and Airtel, is likely to catapult India as the second largest 4G handset market by next year, a report by Counterpoint today said.

With an estimated installed base of 340 million 4G devices, India will displace the US as the second largest market. With a base of 150 million users, India is currently placed behind China and the US, the report said.

While the US is forecast to see the 4G installed base grow to 245 million from 225 million currently, the Indian market is expected to grow at a faster pace, driven by increasing adoption of mobile Internet.

China, on the other hand, would continue to dominate the tally with 780 million 4G devices next year, growing from 740 million currently.

"LTE capable smartphones contributed to 96 per cent of smartphone shipments in India in Q2 2017. However, in terms of installed base, almost half of the smartphones are still only 3G or 2G capable," Counterpoint noted.

The LTE installed base of handsets crossed 150 million units in India, placing the country third after China and the US.