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Its important to distinguish between internet users and internet consumers. Only India 1 (115 million) have the money to really spend, they are consumers. India

Its important to distinguish between internet users and internet consumers. Only India 1 (115 million) have the money to really spend, they are consumers. India 2(approx 450 mio and are those who in large parts work for india 1) have older smartphones or feature phones and only some of them have money to spent. A lot of bad vc investments didnt make that distinction and got hurt. None the less lots of opportunities there for thos who can find products or services india 2 can afford.

killjoywashere 7y ago
Is there a formalization of the Two Indias concept in the economic literature or market reports?
- iso947 7y ago
  I assume “India 3” would be the other 500+ million?
  - tangoalpha 7y ago
    I was wondering the same. As the numbers didn't add upto the population.
  - ThomPete 7y ago
    Yup India 3 is the rest.
Merrill 7y ago
Is the market also segmented by language community?
- thrwaway69 7y ago
  Actually it's not that bad compared to some of the other countries. While we do have too many regional languages and dialects across states, people are usually bilingual.
- ThomPete 7y ago
  115million approximately speak English sufficiently (India 1) India 2 is more a mix of some speaking a little English but mostly some regional language. There are 3-4ish big ones. India 3 (the remaining) is almost purely regional languages (+20)
pretty_dumm_guy 7y ago
Hi, I am curious to know if this distinction exists in literature. I, for one, am not familiar with this distinction. There are different market segments to which people belong as in any other country and their proportion may vary starkly compared to well-developed countries for example. But the distinction you are making is very new to me.
- ThomPete 7y ago
  Some about it here. I am looking for another repport i read a while back. https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/mckinsey-digital/our-insights/digital-india-technology-to-transform-a-connected-nation https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/mckinsey-digital... https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/business%20functions/mckinsey%20digital/our%20insights/digital%20india%20technology%20to%20transform%20a%20connected%20nation/digital-india-technology-to-transform-a-connected-nation-full-report.ashx https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/business%20functio...
  - pretty_dumm_guy 7y ago
    Hi, Thank you for these pointers. I read through the article and I couldn't find the distinction that you made. Maybe I missed it. Could you please help me see where it appears ?
    - ThomPete 7y ago
      Hey, I am looking for the article that speaks about it. I first learned about it in this podcast https://technode.com/2019/01/28/71-the-chinese-takeover-of-the-indian-app-ecosystem-with-shadma-shaikh/ https://technode.com/2019/01/28/71-the-chinese-takeover-of-t... But there is a more in depth article I am trying to find. A few interesting things about India 1 and 2 India 1 150-180 Million Internet Consumers Speaks English $1 Trillion Market Unlimited Data Expensive Smartphones Wi-fi at home & office 24/7 connectivity Earning an average of Rs 30,000 a month. India 2 400 Million Internet Users Speaks local languages Serves India 1 Send money home. Care about education of their children. Earning an average of Rs 7,000 a month. Second hand smartphones/feature phones Buy data pack
thrwer234234 7y ago
Interestingly, India1 almost exclusively speaks English, and essentially 'Anglo-Saxon' in culture. It's unsurprising that business models targeting India1 (or indeed any model, be it 'development', 'education') almost never scale for the rest of India. It's rather sad that after 70+ years of 'independence', the country can't seem to shake off its servile colonial mindset. The 'nationalists' in power are no better in this regard - indications are that they are infact worse.
- plutonicks 7y ago
  The caste system existed long before India was a colony
- friendlybus 7y ago
  Servile? It's a genuine aspiration for them. India has a lot of corruption and replacement. Living in a beautiful stable place where you can have wealth and spend wealth without worry is a valuable goal.
- hgoel 7y ago
  So, being rich and educated is bad because apparently you think they're acting like slaves, but being traditionalist is also bad?

killjoywashere 7y ago

Is there a formalization of the Two Indias concept in the economic literature or market reports?

iso947 7y ago
I assume “India 3” would be the other 500+ million?
- tangoalpha 7y ago
  I was wondering the same. As the numbers didn't add upto the population.
- ThomPete 7y ago
  Yup India 3 is the rest.

Merrill 7y ago

Is the market also segmented by language community?

thrwaway69 7y ago
Actually it's not that bad compared to some of the other countries. While we do have too many regional languages and dialects across states, people are usually bilingual.
ThomPete 7y ago
115million approximately speak English sufficiently (India 1) India 2 is more a mix of some speaking a little English but mostly some regional language. There are 3-4ish big ones. India 3 (the remaining) is almost purely regional languages (+20)

pretty_dumm_guy 7y ago

Hi, I am curious to know if this distinction exists in literature. I, for one, am not familiar with this distinction. There are different market segments to which people belong as in any other country and their proportion may vary starkly compared to well-developed countries for example. But the distinction you are making is very new to me.

ThomPete 7y ago
Some about it here. I am looking for another repport i read a while back. https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/mckinsey-digital/our-insights/digital-india-technology-to-transform-a-connected-nation https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/mckinsey-digital... https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/business%20functions/mckinsey%20digital/our%20insights/digital%20india%20technology%20to%20transform%20a%20connected%20nation/digital-india-technology-to-transform-a-connected-nation-full-report.ashx https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/business%20functio...
- pretty_dumm_guy 7y ago
  Hi, Thank you for these pointers. I read through the article and I couldn't find the distinction that you made. Maybe I missed it. Could you please help me see where it appears ?
  - ThomPete 7y ago
    Hey, I am looking for the article that speaks about it. I first learned about it in this podcast https://technode.com/2019/01/28/71-the-chinese-takeover-of-the-indian-app-ecosystem-with-shadma-shaikh/ https://technode.com/2019/01/28/71-the-chinese-takeover-of-t... But there is a more in depth article I am trying to find. A few interesting things about India 1 and 2 India 1 150-180 Million Internet Consumers Speaks English $1 Trillion Market Unlimited Data Expensive Smartphones Wi-fi at home & office 24/7 connectivity Earning an average of Rs 30,000 a month. India 2 400 Million Internet Users Speaks local languages Serves India 1 Send money home. Care about education of their children. Earning an average of Rs 7,000 a month. Second hand smartphones/feature phones Buy data pack

thrwer234234 7y ago

Interestingly, India1 almost exclusively speaks English, and essentially 'Anglo-Saxon' in culture. It's unsurprising that business models targeting India1 (or indeed any model, be it 'development', 'education') almost never scale for the rest of India. It's rather sad that after 70+ years of 'independence', the country can't seem to shake off its servile colonial mindset. The 'nationalists' in power are no better in this regard - indications are that they are infact worse.

plutonicks 7y ago
The caste system existed long before India was a colony
friendlybus 7y ago
Servile? It's a genuine aspiration for them. India has a lot of corruption and replacement. Living in a beautiful stable place where you can have wealth and spend wealth without worry is a valuable goal.
hgoel 7y ago
So, being rich and educated is bad because apparently you think they're acting like slaves, but being traditionalist is also bad?