The Indian telecommunications industry is one of the fastest growing in the world and India is projected to become the second largest telecom market globally.

According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the number of telecom subscribers in the country increased to 562.21 million in December 2009. With this the overall teledensity (telephones per 100 people) has touched 47.89.

Moreover, according to a study conducted by Nokia, the communications sector is expected to emerge as the single largest component of the country's GDP with 15.4 per cent by 2014.

The Indian equipment market was estimated at US$ 24 billion in FY09. Finnish giant Nokia is the market leader, with over US$ 3.4 billion revenues in 2008-09, followed by Ericsson at US$ 2.11 billion.

Currently, mobile value-added services (MVAS) in India accounts for 10 per cent of the operator's revenue, which is expected to reach 18 per cent by 2010. According to a study by Stanford University and consulting firm BDA, the Indian MVAS is poised to touch US$ 2.74 billion by 2010.

According to the CII Ernst & Young report titled 'India 2012: Telecom growth continues', revenue from India's telecom services industry is projected to reach US$ 54 billion in 2012, as against US$ 31 billion in 2008.

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