Mobile users may constitute 80% of Internet users by 2017: Google strategist

The number of Internet users in India would reach 500 million by 2017, with as many as 400 million of them getting online through mobile phone, a senior official of search engine giant Google has said.

"There are 350 million Internet users in India, of which 152 million are mobile users. This number is projected to increase to 500 million in 2017, of which 400 million are going to be mobile users," Ashish Kalsi, strategist, search quality of Google India said.

He was speaking at a workshop for journalists organised by Vox Foundation and "powered by Google" in Bhopal yesterday. "Content is king. What Google does is it gives a level- playing field to all provided the content is sound," he said.

Kalsi explained the four things needed for a website to be discovered quickly on Google search - accessibility, value, display and great user experience. The online content creators can also tap the features such as search console, Google trends, Indian language Internet alliance, he said.