India will exceed 302 million internet users by end-2014
Posted on: 20/Nov/2014 3:01:22 PM
According to a report from the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and IMRB International India will actually have more web users than the US soon. More than 300 million of its citizens expected to access the Internet by December 2014. Out of these about 185 million are reported to be mobile Internet consumers, emphasizing more than ever the need for website owners and online news publishers amongst others to ensure that their domains are optimized for such platforms.
Growth will mainly be driven by internet consumption on mobile devices. The number of internet users in India will grow 32 percent to 302 million this year from 213 million in December 2013. The number of internet users in India is forecast to reach 354 million by June 2015.
China, with over 600 million internet users, is currently the market with the largest internet user base, followed by the US with an estimated 279 million internet users. The Internet in India took more than a decade to move from 10 million to 100 million and 3 years from 100 million to 200 million. However, it took only a year to move from 200 to 300 million users, the report also shows.
Of India’s existing 278 million users, 177 million are in urban areas, up by 29 percent year-on-year. The figure is expected to grow to 190 million by December 2014 and to 216 million by June 2015. In rural India, the number of internet users grew by 39 percent to 101 million in October this year. India’s rural internet user base is forecast to reach 112 million by December 2014 and 138 million by June 2015.
