What is needed is the equivalent of an i-mode for India. While i-mode’s 91% payouts made Japan the pioneer in mobile data, my belief is that a model wherein content and service providers could get 70% of the end-user payment can help drive data services in India. While AppStores do offer that, the “app market” … Continue reading Opportunities in India’s Digital Space – Part 5
One clear opportunity in India is in the eCommerce space. As the Internet user base grows, the convenience of shopping from one’s home (or office) combined with attractive deals will grow the market. The key determinant for success for hard goods will be the efficiency of the value chain (logistics of speedy delivery). Winners are … Continue reading Opportunities in India’s Digital Space – Part 4
To make money via advertising, the Internet opportunity is about 10X the mobile opportunity today in India. But the challenge is that the bulk of the money in this space goes to Google and Yahoo (with Facebook likely to be a strong contender in the future). That leaves a much smaller quantum for the local … Continue reading Opportunities in India’s Digital Space – Part 3
There is a market that is a magnitude larger than Internet advertising in India – and even that barely existed a decade ago. Mobile VAS (value-added services) accounts for consumer spend of about $2 billion (Rs 9,000 cr) in India. With a user base that is also about 10X the Internet base in India, India … Continue reading Opportunities in India’s Digital Space – Part 2
Once again, the startup scene in India’s digital space has started buzzing. The first time it happened was a decade ago. At that time, the users and usage were missing. The situation is a lot different now. Much has happened in the intervening decade. The Internet user base in India has grown from practically nothing … Continue reading Opportunities in India’s Digital Space – Part 1
