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Mobile Technology: Opportunities Galore for Indian ENTREPRENEURS

Mayank Khanduja
Vice President-SAIF Partners India
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Mayank Khanduja
SAIF Partners India is a leading private equity firm that provides both early stage and growth capital to companies in India. It has been investing in India since 2001 and has over 30 investments that majorly focus on IT, Internet, Mobile, Consumer Products & Services, Healthcare and others.

Investing on Mobile Platform is Fruitful
Technology product companies across mobile and web hold a brilliant future as they are scaling up rapidly. Startups today are leveraging the mobile platform to develop great consumer products for traditionally desktop web dominated sectors such as travel, healthcare and education. For instance, JustDial, where we are the earliest investors, is witnessing massive growth through its mobile platform.

Customer Needs Pushing Envelope for Innovative Mobile Products
Technology advancements are inspiring consumers to look for more convenience in this fast paced lifestyle. Indian users are also increasingly accessing internet through their mobile phones and mobile's advanced features have become a source for enabling payments through mobile for both types of goods � physical and digital. I am keenly focusing on these mobile based payment technologies in India. The inspiration was drawn from a startup in the U.S. known as Coin. It enables people to manage all their credit cards with one single card-like-device. A similar solution may work very well in India by replacing the card-like-device with a mobile phone.
Another promising area to look out for is the convergence of mobile and television. I have been tracking the Google Play Store for some time now and it is not surprising to see India becoming the second largest market by number of downloads. As a voracious consumer of content on handheld devices, I personally find the Google Chromecast a great addition for every gadget enthusiast. It has completely changed the contours of the game with extremely aggressive hardware pricing, thus lowering the barrier for adoption. Once hooked, a consumer would pay for the content and that is where the monetization really lies.

Huge Possibilities for Startups in India

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