Russia’s Smartphone Penetration Lags Rest of BRIC

Ranks lowest in smartphone penetration, but shows promise for future growth


Smartphones and tablets are becoming widespread worldwide, including in the BRIC countries, according to a December 2011 survey by UM (formerly Universal McCann). Interestingly though, the survey found smartphone penetration among internet users to be higher in the larger markets of China (59%), India (37%) and Brazil (35%) than in Russia (28%).

Smartphone and Tablet Penetration in BRIC, Dec 2011 (% of internet users)

UM’s survey included only internet users who go online at least every other day; in less-developed markets these tend to represent some of the highest earners in their respective countries, as studies in Mexico and China have shown.

Smartphone users represent a relatively small percentage of mobile phone users in Russia, 11.8% in July 2011, according to GfK Group. As forecast elsewhere in the world, expect smartphone penetration in Russia to increase as prices for both devices and data services drop in the future.

eMarketer forecasts that internet users in Russia will reach 67.9 million in 2012, comprising nearly 50% of the country's total population, compared to 42.4% in China, 42% in Brazil and 8.9% in India.