internet usage: India’s rural areas had 44% more internet users compared to urban markets: Nielsen report

More than 425 million people lived in rural India. Internet users, which is a whopping 44% more than urban indiain which 295 million people regularly used the Internet, according to a report Nielsen.

The report titled ‘India Internet Report 2023’ also mentions that almost half of India’s rural areas are connected to the internet, with strong growth of 30% and more room for growth in the future.

The government defines “rural area” as any area with a population of less than 5,000 and a population density of less than 400 people per square kilometer, where more than 25% of the male population is employed in agriculture.

The report also indicated that the total number of Internet users in India at the end of December 2022 was 720 million.

Read also | The report states that as of December 2022, there are over 700 million active internet users in India.

According to the report, the gap between daily users in urban and rural areas also narrowed in 2022 compared to the previous year, with 93% of urban users using the Internet on a daily basis, while in rural areas the figure is 86%.

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The base of active Internet users aged 12 years and over has grown more than 20% year-over-year to reach 595 million in 2022.

Rural India at the forefront of internet penetration_Graphic_ETTECHETtech

There were over 450 million smartphone users in the country, with just over a third of Indians owning smartphones.

According to the study, over 450 million people watch videos every month in India, with video watching and video calling being the two main online activities among people aged 12 and over.

According to the report, 85 million smartphone users in rural India have shared their smartphones. The main reason for this, the report highlights, was video viewing.

Young people in both urban and rural areas have shown a high interest in both entertainment and e-commerce.

In addition, early teens were particularly interested in online gaming but also showed significant interest in watching videos and listening to music online, with a slight decrease compared to the broader youth demographic.

According to the report, India has seen a significant surge in the use of online banking and digital payments, with an impressive growth rate of 43.

In addition, the category Digital News it also saw a 20% year-on-year increase as nearly one in five Indians now receive news via digital channels. However, there remains a vast untapped market for digital news, indicating ample room for growth in the future.

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