Provider of financial services Avendus explores internet penetration in India driven by mobile phones in a recently released report titled 'India's mobile Internet-The revolution has begun'.

Prologue of the report states that the ubiquitous nature of mobile phones has created a massive opportunity for mobile Internet businesses. Substantiating this statement are the following facts mentioned in the report:

• -India has more than 160 million Internet users, of which 86 million access Internet using their mobile devices.
• -In the last 3-4 years, the number of users who access the Internet through a 3G connection has grown to round 22 million, to put things in perspective, compare this with the 15 million fixed line broadband connections accrued over the last 17 years.
• -9 per cent of overall Internet pageviews in India come from mobile devices.
• -Over 40 per cent of searches on Google originate from mobile device.
• -30 per cent of Facebook users in India are mobile-only Internet users and 30 per cent of new registrations are coming through mobile.
• -LinkedIn ranks India among its top 4 growth markets for mobile usage.

The report claims that mobiles which are a twenty year old phenomenon are now creating the platform for another revolution. It further claims that the mobile ecosystem is demonstrating that it can improve the reach of Internet by a few multiples. The growth of social media and the ability of mobile devices to add location to the product mix are providing opportunities for businesses to fundamentally alter the way users engage socially or the manner in which they purchase goods and services. This is leading to the reimagination of several business models.

The report points out that mobile Internet based businesses have not scaled to levels where belief in the ability to monetize through the channel is established. Several models are still in the trial stage, but there are enough leading indicators to prove we may be on the cusp of a very exciting phenomenon. Some of the indicators given by the report include:

• -Within a year of BookMyShow launching its mobile app, bookings through the app increased to 25 per cent of its overall bookings.
• -20 per cent of overall searches and 12 per cent of bookings for ClearTrip come from its mobile app.
• -Indians seem to be more open to paying for content on mobile - the paid app market estimated at Rs.300 crore, is far higher than what Indian consumers have ever been paid for digital content consumption.

According to the report, the penetration of mobile Internet is driven by three key factors, which form the backbone of the mobile Internet ecosystem:

• -Access devices at the right cost, without compromising on the quality of user experience.
• -Availability of affordable data connectivity options, which enable consistent usage.
• -Strong Use Cases, which provide a compelling reason for users to adopt the technology.