Mobile Phone Growth in India Driving Innovation

Mobile phones are more widely used than personal computers in India and the growth of up to 20-million new subscribers per month is driving innovation. The cost of a cell phone call equals a half cent per minute.

"India is the second-largest wireless market in the world, behind China," Peggy Johnson of Qualcomm told 140 attendees to the India Trade Conference July 29 at the Southern California Edison campus in Irwindale.

Johnson, executive vice president of the Americas and India for Qualcomm, said "Wired Internet struggles in India; the path to the Internet is going to be wireless."

She pointed to figures which show about 127 million mobile users in the country - about four times the number of PC users.

Johnson said Qualcomm currently employs 1,000 engineers in India, and the mobile phone world means new applications are constantly being developed. Many ideas directly benefit the social entrepreneur space.

"What if you can use wireless for education, e-governance; how do you solve problems with wireless? Huge areas of the population don't have access to medicine or education," she said.

Johnson cited a real-time mobile classified for agricultural entrepreneurs that helps them find good workers and the best prices for their products. "We kick it off and show what wireless can do. Qualcomm kicks it off and sets it up while local groups then operate."

Another application is Fisher Friend, bringing helpful information to rural fishermen. Fishermen can access local market prices, weather reports and emergency information in their local language.

She said while PCs will have a place, the smartphones - mobile devices - are in demand.

The third annual India Trade Conference was held on the campus of Southern California Edison in Irwindale, about 25 miles east of Los Angeles.

Additional featured speakers were John Fielder, president of Southern California Edison and Holly Vineyard of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Attendees learned about strategies and trends in India, trade and logistics, managing risk in international trade along with social entrepreneurship and green business opportunities.

Sponsors included Southern California Edison, New York Life in Irvine, California, Jet Suite Air, and Quanta Consulting.