The social media user penetration in India was forecast to continuously increase between 2023 and 2028 by 22.4 percentage points. According to this forecast in 2028, the penetration rate will have increased for the fifth consecutive year to 83.16 percent. Notably, the social media user penetration was continuously increasing over the past years.

When asked about the different social networks used to access news as of 2025, a majority of the surveyed respondents in India stated *******, and ******** as their main sources at ** and ** percent, respectively. X (formerly Twitter) had the lowest popularity for news access among Indians in that year.

With the ease of internet access, the number of social media users in India stood at 518 million in 2020. Furthermore, the social network users in the country were expected to be almost 1.5 billion in 2040. Facebook remained the popular choice among the social media platforms as of 2020.

What was the attraction and who was attracted to it?

The Indian Premier League, an annual cricket tournament conducted across major cities in the country might hold the answer. The IPL, one in many cricketing events followed religiously in India, had the highest attendance among all cricket leagues worldwide. Apart from the attendance, fans seemed to be keen on updates about their favorite teams. The IPL teams registered over 59 million likes on Facebook alone and more than 81 million followers on Twitter. Most of the Facebook usage came from the younger generation, aged between 18-24 years to be precise, with over 97 million users in 2018.

How was this achieved?

Increased availability of internet connections and access in recent years, propelled by the central government's Digital India initiative was directly proportional in the growth of social media users. Internet penetration had been on the rise with over 34 percent of the Indians being able to access the internet in 2017, which made the South Asian country the second largest market globally after China.

Growing digitalization efforts combined with low data prices enabled a significant number of people to use the internet actively across India. Of these, about *** million were active social media users. WhatsApp and Instagram accounted for the largest penetration, at over ** percent and over nearly ** percent respectively in the third quarter of 2024. The rise of Facebook in India  Hyderabad became the first Asian Facebook office registered under “Facebook India Online Services Private Limited” in 2010. The steady growth of the social network did not come without controversies. One of the most opposed collaborations that Facebook founded was internet.org, especially in India. The partnership with Reliance communications in 2015 caused controversy and was banned later that year. In recent years, the rise of fake news and its impact on politics has brought responsibility and content moderation to the forefront.   YouTube – the video-sharing social platform counterpart  YouTube was largely inspired by two events according to one of its founders – one of which was the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. The idea was the make sharing and finding videos easily available. YouTube consumption in India sky-rocketed with the Indian Premier League match streaming in 2010 with over *** billion views per day. Of course, this doubled with each season of the IPL thereafter. Furthermore, music videos were highly popular in the country. The evidence lies in the subscription growth of the music record label T-Series’ YouTube channel.

Dataset

This dataset was created by Prachi rikhari

Contents

When asked about the different social networks used to access news as of 2023, a majority of the surveyed respondents in India stated YouTube, and WhatsApp as their main sources at 54 and 48 percent, respectively. X (formerly Twitter) had the lowest popularity for news access among Indians in that year.

Internet Usage: Social Media Market Share: All Platforms: Youku data was reported at 0.040 % in 02 May 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 0.010 % for 01 May 2024. Internet Usage: Social Media Market Share: All Platforms: Youku data is updated daily, averaging 0.000 % from Jan 2024 (Median) to 02 May 2024, with 111 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 0.200 % in 26 Mar 2024 and a record low of 0.000 % in 30 Apr 2024. Internet Usage: Social Media Market Share: All Platforms: Youku data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Statcounter Global Stats. The data is categorized under Global Database’s India – Table IN.SC.IU: Internet Usage: Social Media Market Share.

Get Actionable Insights on Social Media Behavior in India with a Comprehensive Dataset Covering Google Search, YouTube Search, and Reddit Posts. Discover the Latest Trends and Popular Topics Across Various Platforms!

As of the third quarter of 2024, internet users in India engaged in various online activities to access information. Among them, over ** percent used search engines, making it the leading method of accessing online information. This was followed by conducting product and brand research on social network sites.

Social Networking Market Outlook

The global social networking market size is anticipated to expand significantly from USD 88.8 billion in 2023 to USD 177.3 billion by 2032, reflecting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.0% over the forecast period. This remarkable growth trajectory is propelled by the ever-increasing penetration of smartphones, the proliferation of internet access, and a heightened focus on digital social interactions. The integration of advanced technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Augmented Reality (AR) into social networking platforms is also enhancing user engagement levels, thus fostering market expansion. As the world becomes more digital, individuals and enterprises alike are increasingly seeking platforms that offer seamless communication, real-time updates, and personalized experiences.

A key growth factor of the social networking market is the continuous rise in internet adoption rates across the globe. As more regions gain access to the internet, the potential user base for social networking platforms expands correspondingly. Internet penetration has especially surged in developing countries, fueled by affordable smartphone availability and government initiatives aimed at improving digital infrastructure. This has allowed social networking platforms to tap into previously inaccessible markets, thereby driving user growth and engagement. Furthermore, as the digital economy grows, social networking sites are increasingly seen as essential tools for marketing, branding, and customer engagement, prompting businesses to invest heavily in these platforms to reach their target audiences effectively.

The evolution of user preferences towards visual and real-time content is another significant growth driver. Platforms that offer video sharing, live streaming, and ephemeral content have seen substantial increases in user engagement. This shift is largely driven by younger demographics who favor interactive and dynamic content over static text-based updates. Social networking platforms are capitalizing on this trend by incorporating features such as stories, reels, and live broadcasts, which not only enhance the user experience but also open up new revenue streams through advertising and partnerships. The ability of these platforms to innovate and adapt to changing user preferences is pivotal in maintaining user interest and ensuring long-term growth.

The increasing importance of data analytics and targeted advertising also plays a vital role in market growth. Social networking platforms provide businesses with unprecedented access to consumer data, allowing for highly personalized advertising strategies. This capability for precise targeting makes social networking advertising an attractive option for companies looking to maximize their marketing ROI. Moreover, advancements in AI and machine learning are further refining these targeting capabilities, enabling platforms to offer even more sophisticated and effective advertising solutions. As a result, advertising revenues for social networking platforms continue to rise, contributing significantly to overall market growth.

Regionally, North America and Asia Pacific are leading the charge in social networking market expansion. North America, with its technology-savvy population and high internet penetration rates, remains a dominant force, driven by continuous innovation and strategic partnerships within the industry. Meanwhile, Asia Pacific is witnessing rapid growth, fueled by the increasing number of internet users and the widespread adoption of smartphones. Emerging economies in this region, particularly China and India, are becoming key markets for social networking platforms looking to capitalize on vast, untapped user bases. Europe also presents substantial opportunities, with a focus on privacy and data protection driving innovation and compliance in social networking applications. In contrast, the Middle East & Africa and Latin America are gradually catching up, with improvements in digital infrastructure and connectivity.

Platform Type Analysis

The social networking market is segmented into various platform types, including social media, professional networking, dating, and others. Each platform type plays a crucial role in the overall market landscape, catering to different user needs and preferences. Social media platforms remain the most popular segment, driven by their ability to connect people across the globe and facilitate the sharing of personal experiences through text, photos, and videos. These platforms have evolved significantly over the years, incorporating features such as live streamin

[415 Pages Report] The global enterprise social networks market size totaled US$ 6.4 Billion in 2021. Sales in the enterprise social networks market are expected to increase at a 13.9% CAGR, with the market valuation reaching US$ 26.5 Billion by 2032.

Attributes	Details
Enterprise Social Networks Market Estimated Size (2022)	US$ 7.2 Billion
Projected Market Valuation (2032)	US$ 26.5 Billion
Value-based CAGR% (2022 to 2032)	13.9%
Top 5 Vendor Market Share	Around 45%

Scope of Report

Attributes	Details
Estimated Market Size (2022)	US$ 7.2 Billion
Projected Market Valuation (2032)	US$ 26.5 Billion
Value-based CAGR (2022 to 2032)	13.9%
Forecast Period	2022 to 2032
Historical Data Available for	2017 to 2021
Market Analysis	US$ Billion for Value
Key Regions Covered	North America, Latin America, Europe, East Asia, South Asia & Pacific, and the Middle East & Africa
Key Countries Covered	The USA, Canada, Germany, The UK, France, Italy, Spain, Russia, China, Japan, South Korea, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Australia & New Zealand, GCC Countries, Turkey, North Africa and South Africa
Key Segments Covered	Type, Enterprise Size, Industry and Region
Key Companies Profiled	IBM Corporation Salesforce TIBCO Software Yammer (Microsoft) Higher Logic Alma Suite Zyncro eXO Talkspirit BlueKiwi Zoho Corporation JIVE Software Boonex Cisco
Report Coverage	Market Forecast, Company Share Analysis, Competition Intelligence, DROT Analysis, Market Dynamics and Challenges, and Strategic Growth Initiatives

IntroductionThese data were collected in the framework of Dr. Annemie Maertens’ PhD dissertation during the period August 2007 – July 2009. The dissertation was undertaken from Cornell University, but executed in India in collaboration with the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT). The project was sponsored through an NSF Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant (Grant No. 0649330).The main goal of this project was to collect and analyse household survey data in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra in order to gain a better understanding of the role of social networks and identity in economic decision-making. The first panel of this research studied the role of social learning and social pressures in Bacillus thurigiensis (Bt) cotton adoption using data from three villages (Aurepalle, Kanzara and Kinkhed). The second panel of this research studied the role of social norms in educational decisions and aspiration using data from three villages (Dokur, Kalman and Shirapur).The data collection consisted of five phases: (1) qualitative round (to determine the topic of the two panels); (2) trial round (to field test the questionnaires); (3) training round (to train the enumerators); (4) quantitative collection round (to collect the household level, village level data); (4’) data entry of (4) ; (5) data validation round (to collect additional data to correct the missing variables and inconsistencies uncovered in (4’)).The villages selected for this study are part of the Village Level Studies (VLS) program ICRISAT. In this program, ICRISAT followed 300 randomly selected households from six villages during the period 1975-1985 every three weeks. In 2001, ICRISAT restarted the panel, revisiting 185 of the first generation VLS households and their split-offs, in addition to 261 newly added households. This data collection is currently ongoing:To obtain the 1975-1985 and 2001-2006 data:http://www.icrisat.org/gt-mpi/knowledgeBase/Databases/vls.aspTo obtain the 2001-2006 data, see also:http://www.economics.ox.ac.uk/members/stefan.dercon/icrisat/ICRISAT/index.htmlZip files contain pdf / doc / dta filesStata (https://www.stata.com/) is required to view the .dta files - please refer to the read me.pdf before using the data collected.Published papers resulting from these dataMaertens, Annemie (2017) Who cares what others think (or do)? Social learning and social pressures in cotton farming in India. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 99(4): 988-1007.Maertens, A., AV Chari and D.R. Just (2014). Why farmers sometimes love risks: evidence from India. Economic Development and Cultural Change, 62(2): 239-274.Maertens, Annemie and CB Barrett (2017). Measuring social networks' effects on agricultural technology adoption. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 95(2): 353-359.Chari, A V and Maertens, Annemie (2014) Gender, productive ability and the perceived returns to education: evidence from rural India. Economics Letters, 122(2): 253-257.Maertens, Annemie (2013) Social norms and aspirations: age of marriage and education in rural India. World Development, 47: 1-15.Maertens, Annemie (2011) Does education pay off? Subjective expectations with regard to education in rural India. Economic and Political Weekly, 46 (9): 58-63.Maertens, Annemie and AV Chari (2020). What's your child worth? An analysis of expected dowry payments in rural India. World Development, 130.

Databases of highly networked individuals have been indispensable in studying narratives and influence on social media. To support studies on Twitter in India, we present a systematically categorized database of accounts of influence on Twitter in India, identified and annotated through an iterative process of friends, networks, and self-described profile information, verified manually. We built an initial set of accounts based on the friend network of a seed set of accounts based on real-world renown in various fields, and then snowballed friends of friends\" multiple times, and rank ordered individuals based on the number of in-group connections, and overall followers. We then manually classified identified accounts under the categories of entertainment, sports, business, government, institutions, journalism, civil society accounts that have independent standing outside of social media, as well as a category ofdigital first" referring to accounts that derive their primary influence from online activity. Overall, we annotated 11580 unique accounts across all categories. The database is useful studying various questions related to the role of influencers in polarisation, misinformation, extreme speech, political discourse etc.

The results might surprise you when looking at internet users that are active on social media in each country.

Social networks are believed to affect health-related behaviors and health. Data to examine the links between social relationships and health in low- and middle-income country settings are limited. We provide guidance for introducing an instrument to collect social network data as part of epidemiological surveys, drawing on experience in urban India. We describe development and fielding of an instrument to collect social network information relevant to health behaviors among adults participating in a large, population-based study of non-communicable diseases in Delhi, India. We discuss basic characteristics of social networks relevant to health including network size, health behaviors of network partners (i.e., network exposures), network homogeneity, network diversity, strength of ties, and multiplexity. Data on these characteristics can be collected using a short instrument of 11 items asked about up to 5 network members and 3 items about the network generally, administered in approximately 20 minutes. We found high willingness to respond to questions about social networks (97% response). Respondents identified an average of 3.8 network members, most often relatives (80% of network ties), particularly blood relationships. Ninety-one percent of respondents reported that their primary contacts for discussing health concerns were relatives. Among all listed ties, 91% of most frequent snack partners and 64% of exercise partners in the last two weeks were relatives. These results demonstrate that family relationships are the crux of social networks in some settings, including among adults in urban India. Collecting basic information about social networks can be feasibly and effectively done within ongoing epidemiological studies.

We asked Indian consumers about "Social network usage by brand" and found that "Instagram" takes the top spot, while "Tumblr" is at the other end of the ranking.These results are based on a representative online survey conducted in 2025 among ****** consumers in India.

Social media platforms have become integral tools in the conduct of foreign policy for many nations, including India. This dataset serves as a resource for analyzing ‘Social Media and India’s Foreign Policy: The Case Study of ‘X’ Diplomacy during the Covid-19 Pandemic.’ The data were collected through a web-based questionnaire distributed primarily to people aged 18 – 61 and above in India. A total of 171 valid data were collected from 17 states offering extensive geographic coverage and stored in Mendeley. The 15 contributor states are Goa, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Delhi, Assam, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. It encompasses diverse question formats, including single-choice, multiple-choice, quizzes, and open-ended. The study underscores the opportunities and challenges of employing 'X' diplomacy in India's foreign policy. Thus, there were two hypotheses. First, India's effective use of 'X' diplomacy positively impacts public perception of India's foreign policy effectiveness. Second, India's adept use of 'X' diplomacy during the COVID-19 pandemic enhances its ability to manage and respond to the crisis effectively. This data shows public perception of the effective use of social media by the Government of India, particularly in the crisis situation. Data also highlight the significant change in India’s narrative through its ‘X’ diplomacy, effectively setting the narratives, public perceptions, and diplomatic strategies. This data can be fully utilized in the study of the significance of social media in India’s foreign policy, the role of social media like ‘X’ in the making of India’s foreign policy, how effective social media like ‘X’ was during the Covid-19 pandemic and how Indian government utilized social media like ‘X’ to delivered messages and to set the narrative in the international politics.

56.8% of the world’s total population is active on social media.

Facebook had the largest market share among social media platforms across India, at roughly ** percent as of October 2024. The Meta-owned social network site has consistently led the country's social media market since 2019. Instagram was the second leading social media platform during that period with a market share of over ** percent, reflecting a fluctuating trend that emerged in the previous year. Commercial social media usage in India Apart from creating user-generated content, Indians have leveraged social media to grow their businesses. As consumption via online channels increased, social media began playing an important role in stimulating the Indian economy. Among the most popularly used social media platforms in India, Facebook was increasingly used for digital marketing. On the other hand, Instagram emerged as the country’s leading platform for influencer collaboration. Meta Platforms Since its launch in 2004, Facebook has quickly gone on to become the social media giant it is today. Having acquired leading social media platforms Instagram and WhatsApp, the company rebranded itself as Meta Platforms Inc. in 2021. The following year, Meta generated a revenue of nearly *** billion U.S. dollars. The company has further set its sights on bringing the metaverse to life to enhance the online experience of over ***** billion Facebook users across the world.

Gen Z and Millennials are the biggest social media users of all age groups.