Is India Ready for Telematics?

In India, where telematics is in a nascent stage, the market is estimated to cross $100 million in the next 2-3 years with vehicle telematics, driven by cellular M2M connections, taking lead over metering infrastructure and remote monitoring and control

Connected Office. Connected Home. Connected Car... Life is turning digital... at a fast clip. The blending of IT and wireless telecommunications technology is driving it. Referred to as Machine-to Machine (M2M) communication or telematics, the technology is finding applications that are bringing huge efficiencies while turning the process or the service addressable in real- time and creating market opportunities for businesses.

The market size for telematics is projected to be $30 billion globally, over the next 3-4 years, according to industry estimates. India, where it is in a nascent stage, it is estimated to cross $100 million in the same time frame with vehicle telematics, driven by cellular M2M connections, taking lead over metering infrastructure and remote monitoring and control.

A recent report by analyst firm, ABI Research says, OEM telematics and aftermarket telematics will be dominant sectors for cellular machine-to-machine (M2M) connections, growing to over 40 percent connection share. This is in a market where cellular M2M connections are set to grow by double-digits regardless of application category, globally. “Vehicles are being targeted on two fronts for cellular connectivity. OEMs are embedding cellular to both add safety, convenience and infotainment features, and also improve maintainability and more importantly to avoid recalls,” says Dan Shey, practice director

Globally, over the next five years, a ten-fold increase is projected in the number of new cars equipped with factory-fitted mobile connectivity focused on safety and security features, as well as infotainment and navigation services

at ABI Research. The other front is held by insurance companies that are implementing cellular connectivity typically as an aftermarket product for user-based insurance and stolen vehicle tracking services, according to the M2M Services and Modules Market Research, a global report from ABI.

Cellular connections enable value for both markets, which are still relatively under-penetrated. And GSM standard 2G and 3G connections, it is expected, will maintain the lion’s share of connections through 2019 as LTE single mode devices are yet to claim market share, globally, according to the report.

However, India is yet to get on the