India to have 478 million internet users by June 2018, says report

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The number of mobile internet users in India is likely to reach 478 million (47.8 crore) by June 2018, a report jointly published by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and KANTAR-IMRB said.

“The number of mobile internet users increased by 17.22 per cent from December 2016 to reach 456 million users by December 2017,” said the report titled “Mobile Internet in India 2017.”

The report attributed the popularity of mobile internet in the country to its affordability. Widespread use of smartphones, tablets and computers have led to an increase in the number of people getting access to the internet.

“Expenditure on voice has been steadily decreasing from 2013; and with the popularity of VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) and video chatting, the expenditure on voice services has decreased drastically in recent times,” the report said.

“This, in turn, means that there is a rise in proportion of data expenditure in comparison to voice (services) expenditures for most users,” it added.

The report estimated that urban mobile internet users rose 18.64 percent year-on-year, to 291 million, while the number of rural users rose 15.03 percent, to 187 million in December 2017.

These numbers are expected to rise in the near future with the rise in mobile payments on platforms such as PayTM,  and growth of online marketplaces such as Amazon and FlipKart.

The study, however, predicts a slowdown in internet penetration in urban India where penetration is at 59 percent already. Growth is expected in rural areas where mobile internet penetration is at 18 percent.

The difference in internet penetration mirrors other economies such as China, where internet users are divided by large regional discrepancies.

For example, while more than 75 percent of Beijing has access to internet connectivity, only 30 percent of the population of the South-Western province of Yunnan has internet access.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow