Mobile Internet fastest growing vertical, says Google India MD.
Listing a set of next big trends in the overall technology sector, Google India says mobile Internet is set to lead the way for the industry. As against 14 per cent in the US, 11 per cent in Russia, and 6 per cent in the UK, Google India sees about 40 per cent search queries from mobile phones in the country.
"Mobile phones are the future. More smartphones and tablets are being shipped in India than desktops and laptops. In fact, about 40 per cent of search queries for Google India comes from mobile phones as against US (14), UK (6) and Russia (11)," said Rajan Anandan, managing director of Google India during a speaker session at 'Confluence 2011' on Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A) campus.
The premier B-school is organising Confluence 2011, one of the biggest business festival and annual business summit. The three-day event is focusing on the theme of 'Fostering Change, Championing Excellence’ by touching upon on areas like business leadership, entrepreneurship and public policy.
According to Anandan, about 67 per cent of e-commerce in India happens in mobile and consumer appliances. "The Web 1.0 and 2.0 is happening together in India. And the mobile phone space is leading the way with currently 50 million mobile Internet users in India. In fact, this year alone about $500 million worth mobile phones will be brought in India," said Anandan while asserting mobile Internet's importance.
Quoting further figures, the Google India managing director said that smartphones growth in India is currently at 56 per cent CAGR.
"In 2011, 21 million smartphones are being sold in India. This will grow to 32 million in 2012, 52 million in 2013, 72 million in 2014 and eventually 100 million smartphones by 2015. Also, the emerging opportunities for innovation in India are in areas like mobile, e-commerce and SaaS," Anandan added.