MAM
Mobile phone sales to exceed 1 billion in 2009: Gartner
BANGALORE: Mobile phones are soon going to take over all other forms of communications. A global study released by Gartner on mobile phones revealed that the milestone of one billion units sold per year will be reached in 2009.
Gartner’s global forecast for mobile phones also predicts that sales will reach 779 million units in 2005, which is a 16 per cent increase on 2004.
This comprehensive study included detailed forecasts of sales in 62 countries. It was compiled by Gartner’s team of more than 20 mobile and wireless analysts based in 12 countries around the globe.
Worldwide Mobile Terminal Sales
Year
Units
1997
107.84
1998
175.65
1999
295.15
2000
414.99
2001
413.31
2002
427.37
2003
519.99
2004
674.00
2005
778.75
2006
847.24
2007
914.02
2008
980.29
2009
1,041.52
Source: Gartner Dataquest (July 2005)
The research also showed that in 2005, mobile phone sales will reach 779 million units, which will be a 16 per cent increase on 2004. Also, more than 100 million 3G phones will be sold in 2006. Apart from that more than 200 million smartphones will be sold in 2008.
Asia/Pacific accounts for most sales: The research shows that one in every four mobile phones sold this year is in this region.
In 2009 this will increase to one in three. China and India alone will account for nearly 200 million units in 2007, with the Indian market surpassing China in 2009 to reach 139 million units.
According to Gartner, in 2004 the total number of mobile phones sold was around 21 million in India and is estimated to be 34 million in 2005. In comparison China clocked in 68 million units in 2004 and is estimated to grow to 85 million in 2005.
“A conducive regulatory environment, affordable services and increased geographic penetration of networks will drive mobile penetration in India. An important enabler will be the initiative in bringing down handset costs to lower the initial barrier to entry,” says Kobita Desai, principal analyst Asia Pacific for Telecom.
The growth in the Indian mobile market will create new opportunities and challenges for enterprises, individuals and government. Gartner will be holding its India Summit 2005 on 3 – 4 August 2005 in Mumbai. The summit will throw light on this ‘technology-led transformation in the workforce, enterprises and society at large’ in the session ‘The Future of Wireless: Wireless Technology Scenario.’
The world’s appetite for mobile phones has exceeded even the most optimistic expectations. Mobile phones could go on to be the most common consumer electronics devices on the planet,” said Gartner research vice president for mobile terminals Ben Wood.
Gartner estimates there will be 2.6 billion mobile phones in use by the end of 2009.
“The sales volume cannot be attributed to one region in particular. It’s a truly global phenomenon. In mature markets like Europe and North America, subscribers are still buying replacement phones. In emerging markets like Brazil and India, new customers are signing up for mobile services at an even faster rate,” said Gartner principal analyst for mobile terminals Carolina Milanesi.
North Americans are still buying the latest models, but the bigger story is in Latin America. Hugues De La Vergne, Gartner’s principal analyst for mobile terminals in the Americas, said, “Sales nearly doubled in 2004 within Latin America and they will reach 100 million mobile phones a year by 2009. Brazil is the powerhouse of the region, accounting for more than a third of sales this year.”
Deeper analysis of the forecast shows that smartphones are the fastest growing category of device. “Smartphone sales broke all records in the first quarter of 2005 and we expect them to double year on year to 2006,” said Gartner principal analyst Roberta Cozza.
Despite spectacular growth on all fronts, not everything is rosy. Wood cautioned, “Sales numbers are impressive, but the big names in this industry will have to deliver value as well as volume. We expect the average wholesale price of a mobile phone will decline from $174 in 2004 to $161 in 2009. At the same time, phones will keep getting more complex and become ever-more packed with features. Only the sharpest players will survive.”
MAM
India’s financial sector spent less on TV ads in 2025 but flooded the internet
Banks, insurers and lenders cut tv ads as digital jumps, LIC and Muthoot lead tv and Axis Bank tops online
MUMBAI: India’s banking, financial services and insurance sector, one of the most prolific advertisers in the country, delivered a split verdict on media in 2025. It spent less on television, held its nerve in print, turned up the volume on radio and deluged the internet with a ferocity that left every other medium looking pedestrian. The picture that emerges from TAM AdEx’s cross-media report for the BFSI sector is of an industry in transition, still wedded to the news bulletin but increasingly seduced by the algorithm.
Television: a retreat with caveats
TV ad volumes for the BFSI sector fell 16 per cent in 2025 compared with 2024, a sharp reversal after two years of consistent growth that had pushed volumes 16 per cent above 2021 levels by 2023 and a further 7 per cent higher by 2024. Within 2025 itself, the drop was concentrated in the middle of the year: the second and third quarters saw ad volumes slide 35 per cent each against the first quarter, with a partial recovery of 13 per cent in the fourth.
The retreat did not reshuffle the deck. Life insurance retained first place among TV categories with 19 per cent of ad volumes, mortgage loans held second with 16 per cent, and the top ten categories together accounted for 82 per cent of all BFSI television advertising. The dominance of news channels was equally pronounced: news claimed 68 per cent of ad volumes, general entertainment channels a distant 14 per cent and movies 12 per cent. Together, news and GEC captured 82 per cent of the sector’s television spend. News bulletins alone took 48 per cent of programme-genre volumes, with feature films second at 12 per cent. Prime time, between 6pm and 11pm, drew 34 per cent of ad volumes, followed by afternoon at 22 per cent and morning at 20 per cent. A full 82 per cent of all ads ran between 20 and 40 seconds.
Life Insurance Corporation of India was the sector’s biggest TV spender with 11 per cent of ad volumes. Muthoot Financial Enterprises came second with 9 per cent, followed by National Payments Corporation of India at 6 per cent, Tata AIG General Insurance at 5 per cent and State Bank of India at 5 per cent. The top ten advertisers together accounted for 51 per cent of total TV volumes. Three names were new to the top ten in 2025: Tata AIG General Insurance, IIFL Finance and Tata Capital. At brand level, Muthoot Finance Loan Against Gold led with 9 per cent share, Tata AIG Health Insurance entered the top ten for the first time, and the top ten brands together contributed 35 per cent of ad volumes.
Print: the long climb continues
Print told a different story. Ad space for the BFSI sector has grown every year since 2021, rising 16 per cent in 2022, 30 per cent in 2023, 51 per cent in 2024 and 64 per cent in 2025, all measured against a 2021 baseline. Within 2025, ad space was flat in the second quarter but surged 46 per cent in the third and 33 per cent in the fourth compared with the first. Life insurance led print categories with 21 per cent of ad space, followed by mutual funds and banking services and products at 13 per cent each, and corporate financial institutes at 11 per cent. The top ten categories together took 82 per cent of print ad space. LIC led print advertisers with 6 per cent share, and the top ten together covered just 19 per cent of ad space, a reflection of how fragmented print spending remains. Three new entrants joined the top ten in 2025, with Billion Brains Garage Ventures the only exclusive presence not seen in 2024’s list. In the top ten brands, LIC dominated with a 2 per cent share, while Nippon India Mutual Fund rose to third position from fourth in 2024. English accounted for 62 per cent of print ad space, Hindi for 20 per cent. Business and finance publications took 59 per cent of the genre split. The south zone led regional spending with 33 per cent of print ad space, Bangalore topping that zone, while New Delhi and Mumbai were the leading cities nationally.
Radio: louder than ever
Radio ad volumes for the BFSI sector have climbed steadily, rising 12 per cent above 2021 levels in 2023, 36 per cent in 2024 and 45 per cent in 2025. The quarterly pattern within 2025 was volatile: a sharp drop of 43 per cent in the second quarter and 42 per cent in the third, followed by a near-full recovery in the fourth. Life insurance led radio categories with 22 per cent of volumes, banking services and products second at 14 per cent and corporate NBFCs third at 11 per cent. LIC of India held its position as the leading radio advertiser with 20 per cent of ad volumes; the top ten radio advertisers together covered 69 per cent. Muthoot Financial Enterprises led radio brands with 10 per cent share, five of the top ten brands belonged to LIC alone, and SBI Mutual Fund made a remarkable leap to fifth position from 272nd in 2024. Evening and morning time-bands together captured 84 per cent of radio ad volumes, with evenings at 44 per cent and mornings at 40 per cent. Maharashtra was the leading state for radio BFSI advertising with 18 per cent share; Maharashtra, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh together accounted for 43 per cent.
Digital: the five-times surge
If one number defines the 2025 BFSI advertising story, it is five. Digital ad impressions for the sector multiplied fivefold between 2021 and 2025, having already doubled in 2023 and doubled again in 2024 before the 2025 leap. Within the year, impressions dipped 19 per cent in the second quarter and 12 per cent in the third before recovering 8 per cent above the first quarter by the fourth. Banking services and products led digital categories with 27 per cent of impressions, life insurance and credit cards tied at 19 per cent each, and securities and sharebroking organisations fell from first place in 2024 to fourth in 2025. Axis Bank was the runaway leader among digital advertisers with 12 per cent of impressions, followed by ICICI Bank at 9 per cent, IDFC First Bank at 7 per cent and Kotak Mahindra Bank at 6 per cent. The top ten digital advertisers covered 59 per cent of impressions, and seven of them were new entrants compared with 2024, signalling rapid churn in the digital spending hierarchy. At brand level, Axis Bank led with 9 per cent, ICICI HPCL Super Saver Credit Card vaulted to third place from 921st in 2024, and six of the top ten digital brands were new to the list. Programmatic buying accounted for 91 per cent of all digital BFSI transactions; combined with ad networks, it captured 96 per cent.
The data from TAM AdEx paints the portrait of a sector that still believes in the power of the television news bulletin to sell insurance to the masses, but increasingly knows that the next generation of borrowers, investors and cardholders is scrolling, not watching. The race is now on to reach them before the algorithm serves up someone else’s loan offer first.
