Rural Internet Population to Reach 45 million by December 2012

Until recently, the internet population in the rural regions of India was very low. But according to a new report from Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and Indian Market Research Bureau (IMRB), the new technology is growing popular not only in the urban regions but also in the rural regions of the country.

As per a recent I-Cube report titled "Internet in Rural India" by IMRB and IAMAI, currently India has 38 million internet users from the rural areas and the number of users who have accessed the web at least once in their lifetime will reach 45 million by December, 2012.

Subho Ray, President of IAMAI said, "This is just the tip of the iceberg. In the next two years, a combination of affordable smart phones, optic fiber backbone and local language content is likely to beat projections of internet growth in rural areas.”

According to the report, the claimed users of rural India have showed 73% growth rate, increasing from 2.6% in 2010 to 4.6% in 2010. Claimed internet users are those who have accessed the web at least once in their lifetime. Further, around 75% use the internet for entertainment while 56% use it for communication.

It states that "There is a growing interest amongst the rural constituents seeking information on education. 81 percent of claimed internet users seek information pertaining to school / university and exam centres."

Moreover, the primary sources to get internet access in the rural regions are cyber cafes and community service centers. The report indicates that 57.7% of the internet users access the service through these sources while 12% access internet through mobile phones.

“About 57.7 percent of the internet users accessed internet through this common user points. A significant 12 percent of the internet users access internet on their mobile phones,” the report said.