About India’s Internet economy: Growth driver – Expanding internet economy will increase opportunities

Source: The post is based on the article “Growth driver – Expanding internet economy will increase opportunities” published in the Business Standard on 13th June 2023

Syllabus: GS 3 – changes in industrial policy and their effects on industrial growth.

Relevance: About the report on India’s Internet economy.

News: A research report titled “e-Conomy” makes startling projections about India’s internet economy.

What is the Internet economy?

About the e-Conomy report

-The report also estimates per capita income will rise from $2,500 (2022) to $5,500 (2030). Thereby doubling consumption.

-Per capita income in Tier-II cities and rural households (referred to as TII+) will grow 430% between 2019 and 2030.

– Business-to-consumer, or B2C, e-commerce will contribute about a third of the online economy’s value by 2030.

What are the key takeaways from the report on India’s Internet economy?

a) Enablers like the Aadhaar, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), and Digilocker have laid the foundations for the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), Open Credit Enablement Network (OCEN), Unified Health Interface and the rapid development of the India Stack, or rather stacks, b) The willingness of TII+ residents to engage digitally provide more opportunity for high growth, c) Software as a service is expected to be a big export-growth area. For example, India is already looking to set up RuPay and UPI-style networks abroad. Six nations are already using the India Stack, and many more have expressed their interest in it, d) Multiple Indian unicorns (108 by the e-Conomy report’s count) and many of the recognised start-ups could leverage their domestic experience to make a mark overseas, e) The report shows the amount of trust consumers placed in local non-celebrity influencers. As their trust has led to a shift in marketing spend, giving India’s 80 million-plus content creators new revenue streams.

What India should do to leverage India’s Internet economy further?

The emergence of India’s Internet economy will also coincide with the emergence of unique imperatives across trust, security and responsibility. To combat these, collaborative efforts from India’s policymakers and the private sector is necessary. Further, the government should create policies that will be supportive for the Internet economy,