Bangalore: The number of Internet users in India reached 37 million in September this year, up from 33 million in March 2006. During the same period, the number of active users (defined as those who use the Internet at least once a month) rose from 21.1 million in to 25 million.

This is revealed in the report of the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and IMRB International. The report mentions that youth are the main users of the Internet in India. College students and those below the age of 35 are the biggest segment on the Internet. It also says smaller cities and towns are increasingly embracing the Internet revolution and pushing growth from below. Smaller cities and towns have shown a whopping 142 per cent year on year growth and now account for 25 per cent of all Internet users.

Predicting further growth, Mohan Krishnan, vice-president and country manager, eTechnology Group@IMRB, says, "The next round of growth will be driven by new and innovative applications such as blogs, P2P (peer to peer), video on demand and online gaming. The old favourites, such as email, chat and instant messaging, will drive first-time users to the medium."

The study estimates that the Internet user base will cross the 40 million mark by March 2007, when the "ever" user base is likely to hit 42 million and the "active" user base is likely to hit 28 million.

By March 2008, the "ever" user base is likely to cross the 50 million mark. The "active" user base is expected to reach 43 million by the same time.

The numbers are a result of the largest "offline" survey. The primary survey for the study was conducted in early 2006 among 16,500 households covering 65,000 individuals in 26 major metros and small towns in India, with additional coverage of 10,000 business and 250 cyber café owners. The survey did not include rural areas, the release said.

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