After enabling purchase of books and clothes among items, as well as internet banking and share market dealings, new mobile applications have been developed to allow consumers buy precious metals like gold and silver.
With nearly 15 million mobile subscribers being added every month in the country, the mobile application market has emerged as a major growth area for developers and there are estimated to be about 2.5 lakh app developers in India alone.
The latest addition to the mobile app space is the one by the 125-year-old non-banking financial giant Muthoot group, which has launched 'Muthoot Group Apps' for Apple and Andriod phones and tablets.
The app will allow consumers to purchase gold and silver coins, besides giving investment reports among other things.
"In the present scenario 'convenience' is the most important criteria wherein the customer can book/buy from the comforts of his/her home and get over the delivery hassles/ billing counter.
"We believe that in the coming years, the sale of gold and silver coins via internet will become as popular as internet banking and online travel and tour booking," Muthoot Group Managing Director George Alexander Muthoot told PTI.
"Brick and mortar branches will always remain our main channel for extending our products and services to the customers. However, with the advent of new technologies, the number of consumers using mobile devices to browse and purchase have increased over a period of time and we, as a progressive organisation are always looking out for innovative means to provide greater customer convenience," he added.
According to a recent study released at Mobile Apps Summit 2012 in Bangalore, as many as 100 million applications are being downloaded in India every month. The global app market is set to grow to $17.5 billion by the end of 2012, from $4.1 billion in 2009.
"India's internet access capable mobile population has already touched 47 million users. A recent research said that smartphone users in India spend on an average 157 minutes on their smartphones in a single day," digital agency Magnon Solutions's Founder and Group CEO Vineet Bajpai said.
"While there are some usability restrictions on mobile devices due to smaller screen sizes, we expect internet/ mobile banking in India to boom to unprecedented levels sooner than later," Bajpai added.
India is expected to have 237 million internet-activated mobile connections by 2015, as a result of which entrepreneurs are focusing more on mobile apps which are internet-dependent, rather than SMS-based.