Visakhapatnam: Mobile internet consumption goes several notches up

Visakhapatnam: From news to games and networking, the lockdown has literally nudged people to turn to social media for varied reasons, pushing the use of mobile internet consumption several notches up.

According to a survey, Indians spend more than five hours on social media. With each having their own requirement, almost every family member spends more screen time.

Moreover, with work from home turned out to be the norm for several employees, this has considerably increased the usage of the internet. "Most of my works are being carried out through my mobile. Earlier, I never made complete use of mobile data. But, with so much of work to be done, the data is getting exhausted very fast," says M Kranti Kiran, who works in a BPO.

It is not just the professionals who are dependent on the internet but even students, women and children also turn to social media for their dose of information as well as entertainment.

To bring in humour element to overcome coronavirus blues, many have taken to TikTok videos and WhatsApp forwards like never before. Unlike earlier, watching news and sharing videos have become a daily routine for homemakers too. "After completing our chores, the next activity is to check our WhatsApp and share inputs pertaining to precautionary measures against coronavirus. Whatever we practise like drinking hot water or having hot food, we keep sharing among our groups. This way, we feel connected though we are staying miles apart," says G Ranjitha, a homemaker.

With the data usage going up for consumers, alerts continue to pop up on their mobile phones from their respective operators. "Since 50 per cent of my data usage gets exhausted by noon, I get alerts. Now, I have changed my plan from 1.5 GB to 2 GB per day," says T Satish Kumar, an entrepreneur.

Students find it hard to spend their entire time indoors. They depend on YouTube and online Apps for their education purpose. Online games and movies via video streaming services like Netflix and Prime offer them entertainment during the lockdown.

Similarly, internet usage through AP State FiberNet Limited has also gone up compared to the last couple of months. To reduce the stress on mobile networks, one of the dish television operators said, that video steaming services suspended the quality content from high definition (HD) to standard definition (SD). With ever-increasing data traffic registered with each passing day, users also complain about slowing down the speed.

According to a recent survey, India stands second in mobile data usage. It may not be a surprise if it secures the top spot by the time the lockdown gets lifted.