India and Internet Explosion

India’s total population is 1570 million as of date. India has over 600–700 million active Internet users aged 2 years and above as of December 2021. That means, at least 1-in-2 or 1-in-3 Indians have access to the internet and are actively using it (almost 90% of people access the internet daily).

A recent study by Nielsen called “Bharat 2.0” reveals that Rural India registered a presence of 352 million internet users, more than the urban population. This is a surprising statistic and shows how digital technology has penetrated across India.

At the same time, we should note that Bharat 2.0 study also reveals that 60% of the rural population is still not actively using the internet, and Urban India on the other hand has registered a 59% penetration with 294 million active internet users.

If proper audio / video / text content that is useful to people (not just for entertainment) can be created for the Indian rural segment, it can increase internet consumption in rural India and also be a huge untapped market for content creators.

What do people over 12 years actively do on the internet?

- Watching videos (60% men vs 40% women)

- Shopping online (47% from Affluent societies)

- Online Banking & Digital Payments (2/3rd users < 30 years of age and 46% from rural India)

Another demographic segment is the women population of rural India. One may be surprised to know that 1 in every 3 female internet users in rural India is actively using the internet. Female users’ growth since 2019 is 61% as compared to male users who grew at 24%.

How is internet penetration so high in rural India? The Bharat 2.0 study points out that the main reasons are the availability of cheaper mobile phones and affordable mobile data.

Looks like rural India is actively and hungrily consuming any tech coming their way!

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