Cost of mobile internet falls in emerging economies

Rob Clapp

An overview of the cost of mobile internet in China, India, Indonesia, Nigeria and Pakistan between 2015 and 2017.

The cost of mobile internet is becoming increasingly affordable in key emerging markets, according to the latest data from the Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI). A 1GB mobile data plan costs 1.6% of average monthly income across China, India, Indonesia, Nigeria and Pakistan - down from 3.4% in 2015. This is below the 2% or less level defined as affordable by the UN Broadband Commission, while A4AI suggests 1GB of data is enough to send or receive 1,000 emails and browse the internet for around 20 hours each month.

China was the only market where a 1GB mobile data plan...

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