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Report – Mobile Internet in India - 2016

Prepared by:

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Table of Contents Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 2

Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 3

Purpose of Accessing Mobile Internet .......................................................................................................... 4

Device Preference ......................................................................................................................................... 5

Spend on Mobile Connection - Voice & Data ............................................................................................... 6

Future Estimates ........................................................................................................................................... 7

Annexure: Study Methodology, Demographic Segments and Sampling Procedures ................................... 8

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Executive Summary

Internet usage on a mobile phone device continues

to gain traction among internet users in India. As per

I-Cube 2016, it is estimated that close to 373 million

internet user’s access internet using their mobile

phones. Out of them, it is estimated 226 million

users are from Urban India and 147 million users are

from Rural India.

The penetration of Mobile Internet* in India is

estimated to be 28% as per October 2016.

The mobile internet user-base is estimated to grow

further to reach 410-420 million users by June 2017.

Among these users a little less than 50% of users are

young users who are less than 25 years of age.

The monthly spend on mobile internet is 65% as compared to 35% spend on voice service, which again

indicate the growing usage of mobile internet service. The average monthly spend on mobile service

(voice and data) was around INR 349.

Some of the key purpose for accessing internet on mobile phone is Communication (69%) and Social

networking (68%) among users from urban India while in rural areas top activities performed people

engage with are “Entertainment”. “Communication” & “Social media access”.

Chatting on social networking websites (37%) and Email (35%) are the top activities people engage

with under communication and social networking in urban areas. In rural areas, listening to music (11%)

and watching videos (9%) are the top activities people engage in.

*Mobile internet users are those who ever accessed internet on the mobile phone All figures shared in the report are estimated numbers

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Introduction The number of Mobile Internet users in India has grown by 15% over October 2015 to reach an

estimated 373 million in October 2016. These users access internet on their mobile phone. An estimated

61% of these users are from urban areas and another 39% are from rural areas.

Urban India is quite heavily penetrated with 51%users while in rural India penetration is still low around

16%. Thus while it seems that the mobile internet users in urban India is slowly moving towards the

saturation point, rural India presents a huge scope for growth of mobile internet users. The number of

mobile internet users has seen an increase in both urban and rural India Between 2015 and 2016 there

has been an estimated 9% increase in the number of users in Urban India while rural India have

witnessed a growth of an estimated 26%. As of October 2016 number of urban user is estimated to be

around 226 million and number of rural users is estimated to be around 147 million.

It is significant to note that close to half of the mobile internet users are less than 25 years and are

mostly Student and young professional.

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Purpose of Accessing Mobile Internet “Communication” & “Social Networking” continues to be the top purpose of accessing mobile internet.

~69% of the urban users uses mobile internet for online communication or to access social media. This

show the propensity to remain connected in real time is increasing among the mobile internet users in

India. Entertainment and online shopping are the next most important purpose for using mobile

internet. In 2016, indulgence in online shopping has grown by almost 3 fold and now is accessed by 36%

of the users.

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College going students are mostly into listening to music and videos online. Working women engage in

purchasing apparels online while older men engage in online video chatting.

In Rural India, majority of the users access the Mobile Internet for “Entertainment”, “Social Networking”

& “Communication”. Usage of mobile internet for different purpose has increased across all activities.

Online shopping has witnessed some growth though still very low in relative terms, from being negligible

in 2015, now 2% of the rural internet users indulge in online shopping.

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Spend on Mobile Connection - Voice & Data The average monthly mobile data spend is estimated to be around INR 349. Data accounts for 65% of

total mobile bill. Spend on voice service is low at INR 124. This trend in spend is indicative of the fact

that the consumers are engaging more through the data for the connectivity purpose to minimize the

money spent on voice.

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The share of money spend on data service is one of the highest in the age group of 25-34 years age

group whose ~67% of the mobile spend is attributed to data. Older age group spend more on voice

service as compared to other age group.

Future Estimates The mobile internet user base is expected to be 410-420 million by June 2017. Rural market is expected

to grow at a much higher rate than urban market.

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Annexure: Study Methodology, Demographic Segments and

Sampling Procedures

Target Segments For sampling purposes, we extensively used the previous rounds of the I-Cube reports that have laid

down the universe of the Claimed and Active Internet Users in the country.

Below are the cities that have been covered in this research:

Cities by Strata

Top 4 Metros Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai & Kolkata

Next 5 Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmadabad, Surat & Pune

Small Metro (Between 1 to 4 Million)

Coimbatore, Jaipur, Lucknow , Ludhiana, Visakhapatnam, Patna , Guwahati, Kochi, Vadodara, Indore, Nagpur, Aurangabad, Raipur, Faridabad, Jamshedpur, Asansol, Ghaziabad

Non Metro (Between 0.5 to 1 Million)

Belgaum, Bhubaneswar, Aligarh, Durgapur, Malegaon, Salem, Dehradun, Warangal, Gurgaon, Bokaro, Bikaner, Jalandhar, Bhavnagar, Mysore , Noida

Small Town (Less than 0.5 Million)

Alappuzha (Alleppey), Faizabad, Panipat, Kanchipuram, Raichur, Nizamabad, Bilaspur, Gaya , Shillong, Latur, Navsari, Bhilwara, Dewas, Kurnool, Silchar, Deoghar, Patiala, Burdwan, Tumkur Sagar, Brahmapur, Kolaghat, Philbit, Baleshwar (Balasore), Amreli, Chickmagalur, Bhadrak, Jagdalpur, Tezpur, Sahibganj, Rae Bareli, Pathankot, Kashipur, Rishikesh, Solan, Neyveli, Adilabad, Srikakulam, Kasaragod, Satara, Margao, Harihar, Himatnagar, Fatehpur, Hajipur, Bhind, Shimla

Demographic Segments Below are the Demographic segments covered in this research:

Demographic Segments Definition

School-Going Kids Kids below 18 years of age who are attending or completed school education and not attending college

College Going Students Students above the age of 16 years studying in college or university

Young Men Working men aged between 19-35 years

Older Men Men above 35 years of age who might be working or not working

Working Women Working women aged more than 19 years

Non-Working Women Non-Working women aged more than 19 years

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About Kantar IMRB and IAMAI

About Kantar IMRB

Kantar IMRB is a pioneer of market research services in Asia. It partners its clients across the entire

brand lifecycle through a unique mix of innovation and analytical thinking to design customized

solutions that deliver maximum impact. By leveraging on its large array of syndicated services and

specialist divisions, Kantar IMRB helps clients in crafting marketing and consumer strategies. With

a multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural workforce, it is at the forefront of research and consulting

services.

An eight-time recipient of “Agency of the Year”, Kantar IMRB’s footprint extends to 50 offices

across 12 countries.

This report has been drafted by the specialized Technology division of Kantar IMRB.

Contact Details

Kantar IMRB| Technology Practice

IMRB International

2nd Floor, No. 95/3, Kote M.R. Plaza, Doddanekundi, Marathalli – KR Puram Outer Ring Road, Bangalore - 560037

Tel: 080 - 4014 0800

www.imrbint.com

Research Team for this Report

Biswapriya Bhattacharjee, Vice President biswapriya.bhattacharjee@imrbint.com

Sumesh Pansari, Group Business Director Sumesh.Pansari@imrbint.com

Aveek Roy, Account Director Aveek.roy@imrbint.com

Rajat Mishra, Research Manager rajat.mishra@imrbint.com

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About Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI)

The Internet and Mobile Association of India [IAMAI] is a young and vibrant association with

ambitions of representing the entire gamut of digital businesses in India. It was established in 2004

by the leading online publishers, and in the last eleven years has come to effectively address the

challenges facing the digital and online industry including mobile content and services, online

publishing, mobile advertising, online advertising, ecommerce and mobile & digital payments

among others.

Eleven years after its establishment, the association is still the only professional industry body

representing the online and mobile VAS industry in India. The association is registered under the

Societies Act and is a recognized charity in Maharashtra. With a membership of nearly 200 Indian

and MNC companies, and offices in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, the association is well placed to

work towards charting a growth path for the digital industry in India.

Contact Details

Nilotpal Chakravarti – Associate Vice President, IAMAI

Tel: +91-11-41766624 | http://www.iamai.in

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