4G infrastructure critical for higher internet speed: Report

Rolling out of 4G infrastructure is critical for higher internet speed in India, global financial services firm Morgan Stanley said in a report.

"We expect 90 percent of users in India to access the Internet through mobile by 2020. Hence, availability of pan-India 3G and 4G mobile network becomes critical for Internet speeds," the report said.

It stated that as 3G rollout improved, an incrementally greater proportion of data subscribers started coming on 3G compared to 2G, helping the average speeds move up.

"We note that existing and new telecom operators have already incurred huge capex to roll out 4G infrastructure. Further, through its Digital India programme, the government plans to spend $17 billion to connect 600,000 villages through a fibre optics network. These initiatives bode well for average speeds and broadband penetration," the report added.

Internet penetration in India has reached 30 percent, but Internet speeds remain low, with broadband penetration at 16 percent. Moreover, broadband wireline penetration is even lower at 8 percent, the report said.

"Globally, the gap between Internet and broadband penetration is highest for India and Brazil. Low Internet speeds are also highlighted by Akamai, which quotes average broadband speeds for India and Brazil as being among the lowest globally at 3mbps," the report added.