The latest Mary Meeker 2017 Global Internet Trends report signifies the fact that “Smartphone and data costs are still high for the majority of 1.3 Billion citizens.” Still there are many people who do not get the benefit to use this service. People do not have proper communication services, there are places where people have to travel for miles to contact someone. In the overall report it was noted that India stood second, globally, in terms of Internet penetration with 355 Million Internet users in 2016, while China was holding the top position with 700 Million users. There was a 28% rise in the total data, as compared to another year.
Reliance Jio can be held liable for the hike in the Indian market and to increase the internet users in India because as soon as reliance launched this service, there was a massive rise in the figures,compared to which we had before. Reliance gave free Internet and free calls for 6 months and that enhanced the public to choose and to opt this network. Figures crossed the margin of 100 million subscribers, even after starting to charge for the services. Reliance Jio offers the cheapest and most affordable plans, which can be easily used by the public.
If we exclude china, then India stood first in the global market in terms of total time spent on Android phones and total Google Play downloads. List of competitors are rising and this is affecting Indian market. Indian Internet is emerging as a fierce global battleground with the rise of players in hardware and software. Internet usage in India is getting cheaper and faster day by day. Pro-digital policies are playing a pivotal role in leading India as a digital nation. Indian software are also competing in the global marketing and holding positions. While the US-based WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger are still the top downloaded apps, two of the Indian entertainment apps Hotstar and Jio TV- also found a place in the top 10 this year.