Tata Communications has launched its global report, titled ‘Connected World II,’ which find that 82 per cent of surveyed Indians admit to a ‘Fear of Missing Out’ when not connected to the Internet, the highest percentage globally. Despite the nation’s dependence on all things digital, 60 per cent of Indians surveyed equate the Internet with the World Wide Web; showcasing a gap in the actual understanding of the Internet.

Survey

The report captures insights from an online survey conducted by Tata Communications that comprised of 14 closed questions, aimed at capturing behavioural, technical and philosophical responses in relation to people’s associations, understanding and emotional connections to the Internet. A total of 9,417 respondents across six countries - India, Singapore, UK, USA, Germany and France participated in the survey. Out of the total number of respondents surveyed, 50 per cent of them are women and 50 per cent men. 33 per cent of the respondents are from Asia (India and Singapore), 52 per cent from Europe (UK, France and Germany) and 15 per cent from North America with age ranges: 15-25 years (11 per cent), 25-35 years (23 per cent), 35-45 years (22 per cent), 45-55 years (22 per cent) and 55-65years (21 per cent). The findings of this survey were then analysed as an aggregate of the responses and further based on age, gender and location to arrive at the insights.

Key insights

The impact of the Internet on global economies is phenomenal. About 2.5 billion people are connected to the Internet today, that’s a third of the world’s population. By 2020, the number of connected devices is expected to rise to 26 billion. There is still a huge gap in the public’s knowledge and understanding of the Internet. Only half of all global respondents accurately identify where the Internet resides (in network connected data centers), while 82 per cent do not know that the fastest mode of internet delivery to their devices is through sub-sea cables. Surveyed Indians have a better understanding of the Internet with around 30 per cent stating that sub-sea cables are the fastest way to deliver the Internet, compared to 18 per cent globally. Moreover, 60 per cent of surveyed Indians identify network connected data centers as the correct source of the Internet, compared to 51 per cent globally.

The study also reveals that Asian respondents appear to be the most ‘internet dependent’ with less than half of surveyed Singaporeans and Indians capable of lasting up to 12 hours without internet access compared to 86 per cent of German, 77 per cent of French, 75 per cent of US and 70 per cent of UK respondents.

Respondents from Asia and those from the USA and Europe are distinctly different in their vision of the most inspirational opportunity that the Internet will deliver in the future: 32 per cent of surveyed Singaporeans and 27 per cent of surveyed Indians pick smart cities as their preferred choice for what the Internet will enable in the future. Respondents from the UK, France, Germany and the USA, meanwhile, feel that light speed connectivity will be more important.

Other highlights from India include:

• The study reveals that in India, not only did 46 per cent of respondents spend 6 hours or more a day actively using the Internet (in comparison to 29 per cent globally), but an alarming 82 per cent of respondents admit to the ‘Fear of Missing Out’ when not connected (the highest globally)
• Although surveyed Indian men spend more time on the Internet than surveyed Indian women, it is Indian women (21 per cent) who outdo men (16 per cent) in feeling anxious or lost when not connected to the Internet
• More than half of surveyed Indian internet users (56 per cent) admit they can’t survive more than five hours without internet connectivity
• Focusing on the technical understanding of the Internet, the study reveals that 48 per cent of surveyed Indians have a realistic view of the Internet reaching its full capacity limitations, compared to Germany (26 per cent), UK (30 per cent), US (28 per cent), France (43 per cent) or Singapore (38 per cent) respondents
• Indian respondents understand that a lot of information resides in the ‘cloud’ with 69 per cent aware that the ‘cloud’ resides in data centres
• 61 per cent of Indian respondents believe that ‘everyone owns the Internet’, compared to 70 per cent globally with 21 per cent rightly pointing out that each individual country owns their internet when compared to 16 per cent globally
• This study further discloses that tablets and smartphones are rapidly replacing television as the preferred screen as nearly twice as many surveyed Indians (43 per cent) are willing to give up television for the Internet, compared to Americans (17 per cent) and Europeans (22 per cent) respondents
• In the report, the Internet’s ability to ‘connect people globally with incredible speed’ is cited by more than three quarters of the Indian respondents as its principle benefit to society, as opposed to ‘providing a democratic platform for expression’ (10 per cent), ‘enabling e-commerce’ (4 per cent), ‘making shopping easier (3 per cent)’ or a ‘social equaliser’ (5 per cent)

“The survey results also found that 77 per cent of respondents believe the most beneficial impact of the Internet is its ability to connect people globally with incredible speed” says Julie Woods-Moss, Chief Marketing Officer and CEO of Tata Communications’ Nextgen Business. “The Internet has truly changed the way we function. As technologies evolve and adapt, there is a huge potential for the Internet to affect different aspects of life, economy and society. The use of these technologies will continue to expand in unexpected ways, and organisations will need to continuously explore, adapt and embrace new digital realities to thrive in. A better understanding of the Internet is likely to improve the appreciation of the Internet and its capabilities leading to new and innovative ways to incorporate digital resources into daily activities.”