Based on a recent report by Nielsen, smartphones have an optimistic future in some of the most populated countries on the planet. The emerging market dubbed BRIC includes Brazil, Russia, India and China.
The report details that the standard phone with no touchscreen, QWERTY keypad or operating system is the dominant phone in India (80 percent of mobile subscribers) and Russia (51 percent), while only 36 percent of the population in Brazil owns a smartphone. The survey also states that China’s reported 66 percent smartphone penetration rate may be inaccurately skewed higher because the online-only survey excludes a large portion of China’s rural population.
Despite the methodology of the surgery, it’s clear that smartphones are the minority in mobile devices. Thus, the emerging high-growth BRIC market is a lucrative consumer base for companies such as Apple and Samsung. Several smartphone manufacturers are broadening their product ecosystems to accustom to the future smartphone wants and needs of the BRIC markets.
Brands, companies, and mobile software developers will all benefit from the potential penetration of smartphones in the BRIC markets. The new populace of smartphones owners will drive additional revenue and develop new consumer behaviors.