India’s technology landscape is on the cusp of a huge transformation. Chairman of Reliance Industries Mukesh Ambani is at the helm of this push. He aims to convert millions of televisions into personal computers, a move that could address the nation’s lagging PC penetration, which remains two decades behind China‘s. Smartphones dominate overall as the primary computing device in Indian homes. It is a powerful initiative focused on bridging this stark digital divide in a country where only 15% of households have access to a computer.
India’s overall PC market is booming. It logged a phenomenal 8% year-over-year increase in shipments in the first quarter of 2023. The unit shipments of commercial PCs grew 7.7% year-over-year to 3.3 million units, the seventh straight quarter of increases. Despite this positive trend, challenges persist. That’s because the active Direct-to-Home (DTH) subscriber base saw an 8% year-over-year drop as of March, a powerful sign of changing consumer demand.
Further, most Indian households, about 70%, already own a television — an appealing prospect for a government led initiative like Reliance’s JioPC. That’s in spite of the fact that the company already has over 488 million users. Its latest push is on bringing new users online in low-income, rural communities where access to PCs is still a norm. Jio’s strategy could onboard potential PC buyers by leveraging its existing pay-TV set-top box user base, which stands at nearly 57 million.
As local tech leaders suggest, real success goes past having the hardware. Market analyst Prabhu Ram stressed the need for execution—not just announcement. He said the initiative’s potential reach is wide. Its success will be determined by its execution—namely in filling connectivity gaps and enhancing digital literacy. It has to scale beyond the early adopters to really reach those underserved communities.
To really differentiate JioPC, Reliance will need to partner with app developers and productivity solution providers. By working with these collaborators, we’ll help provide a variety of different applications for users to access. Tarun Pathak, research director, Counterpoint, highlighted the importance of illustrating the benefits and value proposition of JioPC. He talked a lot about the art of persuasion. Long live the PC on the TV – thanks to the set-top box, you can still enjoy it!
Even Reliance is changing its business strategy toward a digital-first/consumer-first innovative model. To truly win, the company will need to build an ecosystem that improves access and usability. Ambani’s vision is to cut through these obstacles, fast. By improving digital literacy and connectivity, he could change the way that hundreds of millions of Indians interact with technology.