Rural India puts smartphone-buying plans on hold

According to Associate Vice President at IDC India, the rural share was growing till mid-2021 before stagnating at 35-40 per cent of total sales

Smartphone sales in rural parts of the country have stopped rising with its share remaining stagnant since mid-2021 at around 35-40 per cent of total smartphone sales in the country, a report in the Economic Times said.

The report includes two independent research studies that found that the sales have been held up because of spending weakness in the smaller towns and villages, and not inflation.

According to research firm IDC India, in 2022, out of the 122 million smartphones sold throughout the country, around 35-40 per cent were bought in rural areas. The number remained the same in the first quarter of this year.

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Navkendar Singh, Associate Vice President at IDC India, told the publication that the rural share was growing till mid-2021 before stagnating at 35-40 per cent of total sales.

“Rural users find feature phones more convenient to use for voice calls due to a low cost of ownership, longer lasting batteries. The uneducated masses, especially females, find smartphones more complicated to use,” Singh said.

The report quotes a survey conducted by IIFL Securities in villages along the Mumbai-Nashik highway in Maharashtra, which found out that increasing smartphone prices have dented sales, with the best-selling phones falling in the Rs 10,000-15,000 price range.

In terms of 5G smartphone sales, the difference is even bigger. Only three out of every 10 5G smartphones sold in the country are bought in rural areas. The absence of 5G networks in villages has restricted the appeal of 5G handsets.

Even if network availability improves, the growth of 5G handsets in rural areas will remain slow as per Singh. “Also, the limited use cases and higher ASP of 5G devices will restrict the growth of 5G handsets in rural areas for some time, despite network availability,” Singh said.