Cellphone makers always keep a new proposition handy to perk up sales even before fatigue starts setting in with the previous one. First, it was the FM radio, and then came the music player and later still, the camera became the defining feature in mobile phones.

This time it is GPS-enabled devices that have acquired top priority with most leading manufacturers. “GPS is definitely the next big application in mobiles,” says Spice Mobiles CEO Kunal Ahooja. “The growth in this segment is scorching and it’s a huge segment waiting to be explored.” In the next two years, he adds, there will be a dramatic leap in this category. Spice Mobiles plans to launch five phones with in-built GPS receiver in the next six months.

Nokia, the market leader in handsets is also actively promoting its GPS-enabled phones. Says a Nokia spokesperson, “In India, our maps are available for eight cities- Delhi & NCR, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Pune, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore & Hyderabad.

The maps will be continually refreshed every 6 months and we’ll continuously work with our partners to add new cities on an ongoing basis; to give location based experiences across India.” Earlier this year, the company had acquired NAVTEQ, a provider of digital map information for automotive navigation systems, mobile navigation devices, internet-based mapping applications.

The Indian mobile phone market is worth up to 10 million handsets a month. Although the GPS-enabled phones’ segment is merely 1% of this at present, the space is already flooded such phones, with a plethora of options across varying price-points. Realising that this feature is the next attraction for urban buyers, all major companies have lined up a slew of launches in the coming year. Many are also in talks with map-making companies for tie-ups. Says Ajay Sharma, country head, HTC Mobiles.

“Today, the easy availability of integrated chipsets and better maps works as an advantage. In the last one and a half year, the prices of maps have come down by about 75%, which is also helping the growth of GPS-enabled phones’ market.”

Six of the company’s 13 models in the market today are GPS enabled. What’s more, all HTC mobiles launched from next year onwards will be GPS enabled and will come bundled with maps and applications.

According to Meridian Mobile marketing head Sougat Chatterjee, the GPS phones market will grow to become up to 4% of the entire market in one year. “While the feature will take time to go mass-market, urban consumers particularly fancy it.” Meridian mobiles. he says, will launch 18 GPS-enabled phones in the next one-year.

Cheaper technology and accessibility is bound to bring the price of GPS enabled phones down. Such phones are today available from about Rs 9,500, going all the way up to the premium phones’ price level. Naveen Mishra, manager, Communication Research, IDC India is of the view that the application needs to be nurtured further to enhance its appeal.

“GPS is new to the market and it will take another two to three years for this segment to boom,” he notes. “To make this popular, an ecosystem needs to be built where seamless interconnectivity exists between operators and location-specific destinations.”

However, there are some who feel that the GPS revolution might take longer coming through. “In today’s market, there are specific mobiles for fulfilling specific consumer needs,” says Lloyd Mathias, senior director, sales, Motorola India and South West Asia.

“So while college-going youngsters want phones with FM radio player, music player and camera, executives want access to e mail on the move. At this stage, GPS appeals to a restricted audience.”

Amidst the noise around GPS phones, leading map-making companies are a truly a coveted lot. “We have tied up with Motorola and Sony Ericsson and negotiations with all other major manufacturers are in advanced stages,” says MapmyIndia managing director Rakesh Verma. He says the demand for maps is overwhelming and will remain so for sometime thanks to the numerous GPS handset launches.

Source:economictimes