BWI: Frost & Sullivan: India’s Vast Mobile User Base Makes it an Ideal Market for mHealth Services

Press release from Business Wire India
Source: Frost & Sullivan
Thursday, April 25, 2013 11:00 AM IST (05:30 AM GMT)
Editors: General: People; Business: Business services, Electronic appliances & components, Information technology; Technology; Healthcare
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Frost & Sullivan: India's Vast Mobile User Base Makes it an Ideal Market for mHealth Services
Greater awareness about mHealth will close the gap between urban and rural markets

Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, Thursday, April 25, 2013 -- (Business Wire India) -- Changing disease profiles, increased adoption of smart phones, advancements in mobile technology, and greater focus on health and wellness are laying concrete foundation for mHealth in India. Currently, there are more than 20 initiatives for mHealth in the country. This number is set to grow as India has a robust mobile technology infrastructure in place and saw the launch of 4G in 2012.

Furthermore, India has the second largest population in the world and one of the highest numbers of mobile users. The swelling subscriber base is attributed to low tariffs and inexpensive handsets.

New analysis from Frost & Sullivan (http://www.healthcareIT.frost.com), Overview of mHealth Market in India, finds that the compound annual growth rates (CAGR) for mobile handset in the rural and urban markets are likely to be 12.4 and 10.6 percent, respectively, till 2016.

mHealth is still a fledgling concept and most of the initiatives undertaken are only a couple of years old. The market has very few successful business models and it will be at least two to five years before a successful model emerges. This is due to the large disparity in mobile infrastructure in rural and urban India.

"Mobile connectivity and data transmission is still a challenge in the rural markets," observed the Frost & Sullivan Analyst. "Since people from these market segments use mobile phones mostly for their voice services, the acceptance of value-added services is very low. The primary reason for this is high prevalence of poverty and illiteracy (around 31 percent) in rural areas."

The urban market, however, continues to witness growth in mobile handset uptake due to the developing replacement market. With quality healthcare being centralized in urban centers, there is a dearth of medical workforce in rural markets. The healthcare industry is hoping that mobile platforms will close the disparity in service provision. With the increasing penetration of mobile services in rural areas, mHealth solutions can strengthen the healthcare delivery system for the rural population. This will happen only with a collaborative effort on the part of policy makers, telecom providers, and mHealth solution providers.

"The rural population should be educated about the benefits of mHealth services, while the urban population should be encouraged to use mHealth applications to modify and monitor their lifestyle," said the analyst. "Once these objectives are realized, the mHealth application market in India is expected to develop significantly over the period of next five years."

If you are interested in a virtual brochure, which provides a brief synopsis of the research and a table of contents, then send an e-mail to Priya George / Akshata Mhatre, Corporate Communications, at priyag@frost.com / akshatam@frost.com, with your full name, company name, title, telephone number, company e-mail address, company website, city, state and country. Upon receipt of the above information, a brochure will be sent to you by e-mail.

Overview of mHealth Market in India is part of the Connected Health Growth Partnership Services program, which also includes research in the following markets: European Market for Medical Grade PCs, MCAs, and Bedside Terminals, Analysis of the North American Telehealth Industry, U.S. Hospital Health Data Analytics Market, and Analysis of the Video Telemedicine Market. All research services included in subscriptions provide detailed market opportunities and industry trends evaluated following extensive interviews with market participants.

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Overview of mHealth Market in India
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CONTACT DETAILS
Akshata Mhatre, Corporate Communications - South Asia, Frost & Sullivan, +91 9867873010 / +91 (22) 66072020, akshatam@frost.com
Priya George, Corporate Communications - South Asia, Frost & Sullivan, +91 9840355432 / +91 (44) 66814456, priyag@frost.com
Nimisha Iyer, Corporate Communications - South Asia, Middle East & North Africa, Frost & Sullivan, +91 9820050519 / +91 (22) 66072004, niyer@frost.com

KEYWORDS
PEOPLE, BUSINESS SERVICES, ELECTRONICS, IT, TECHNOLOGY, HEALTHCARE

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