The BRIC nations of Brazil, Russia, India and China share large areas and populations, fast-growing economies and rapidly expanding technology markets. Mobile communications have surged in recent years as a cost-effective means of connecting consumers spread across great geographic expanses.
Yet for the most part, the extreme growth of the past is giving way to maturity as mobile subscriber bases solidify, infrastructure improves and more consumers develop both the income and appetite for more advanced wireless services.
“Although the mobile markets in the BRIC countries continue to expand at a healthy pace, the days of triple-digit subscriber growth are long past,” said Noah Elkin, eMarketer senior analyst and author of the new report “BRIC Mobile: Emerging Markets Mature.” “As subscriber bases solidify, it is now the mobile Internet user populations that are increasing rapidly, albeit from small bases.”
Mobile advertising is still in a relatively nascent stage across the BRIC countries, and each market will develop along a different trajectory. China, which has the largest mobile subscriber and Internet population, will emerge as a significant mobile advertising market by 2012, although spending will still be low relative to the size of its user base. In Brazil, India and Russia, spending levels across the primary mobile advertising channels—messaging, display and search—will remain modest.
“Given the high concentration of SMS usage, especially relative to the low level of mobile Internet usage in all the BRIC countries but China, messaging-based campaigns will provide marketers with the widest exposure to mobile consumers,” said Mr. Elkin. “However, as smart devices proliferate and consumers’ appetites for advanced applications such as video increase, marketers will have more sophisticated opportunities to engage mobile users.”
The full report, “BRIC Mobile: Emerging Markets Mature,” also answers these key questions:
- What are the primary attributes of the mobile user population in these key emerging markets?
- Where is there room for growth in mobile usage?
- Where does the mobile Internet fit into usage patterns?
- How can marketers successfully reach mobile consumers?
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