Bangalore, March 9, 2016: 3G  mobile traffic  in India outpaced  2G across all circles for the first time in 2015, while  overall mobile data traffic grew by 50%, finds  Nokia’s annual report on mobile broadband performance, the MBiT Index study.
It also indicates how a growing device ecosystem and increased adoption of multimedia services will boost traffic further as 4G LTE networks are rolled out across the country.
Subscriber appetite is growing for multimedia services, with video and social networking now making up 60% of data traffic. Average monthly data usage for 3G surpassed 750 MB per subscriber and, with operators poised to launch 4G LTE networks, faster data speeds will fuel an even greater surge in traffic – echoing 4G LTE launches in other parts of the world where operators have traditionally seen data usage increase by up to four times.
Says: Sandeep Girotra, Vice President and Head of IndiMarket, Nokia: “Aggressive 3G network expansion in existing circles and new launches by operators have been instrumental in increasing data traffic in India. It is expected that this data traffic growth will be boosted in coming years by the auction of additional spectrum, an increase in smartphone penetration and the development of the content ecosystem. Moreover, the rapid evolution of the device ecosystem, supported by a decline in prices, presents significant growth opportunities for operators as they launch and expand 4G LTE networks in coming years.”
Expected trends in 2016
·         With evolving device support for 3G carrier aggregation, operators could potentially offer DC-HSPA as a substitute for 4G LTE in some circles in the short term.
·         4G LTE device ecosystem will continue to grow with decline in device prices, thus giving operators the opportunity to monetize quickly as they launch 4G LTE networks.

Nokia’s MBiT Index, a report on mobile broadband performance in India, provides insights about mobile broadband traffic growth in the country and correlates trends with changes in various ecosystem drivers such as devices and subscriber usage patterns. The Index is based on Nokia’s analysis of data obtained from various sources, including input and analysis done by Analysys Mason