Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) could have its third largest user base in India at 18.1 million by the end of this year, according to research firm eMarketer. In its first report on Twitter user forecast, the market researcher said that the Asia-Pacific region would contribute 32.8% of Twitter users, compared to 23.7% in North America in 2014.
Massive internet population
Further, the research firm said that Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) will mostly benefit from emerging markets like India and Indonesia.
“India and Indonesia will rise to have the third- and fourth-largest Twitter populations in the world in 2014, with 18.1 million and 15.3 million users, respectively, both surpassing the U.K. for the first time this year for the number of users,” it said.
According to the report, these developing nations have massive Internet user populations, which reflects good potential for the micro-blogging site going forward. It is suggested that by 2018, Asia-Pacific‘s user base will be twice that of North America’s, surpassing the 40% mark in terms of worldwide market share. If China revokes the ban on Twitter, then this share will rise further.
The overall user base for Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) is expected to surge 24.4% to 227.5 million users in 2014 from 182.9 million last year. The company expects that by 2018, it will grow 10.7% to reach around 400 million users globally.
User growth in key markets to decline for Twitter
eMarketer also mentioned in its report that by 2018, user growth in key markets like the United States and Japan would come down to 6.4% and 6.1% respectively, and the global user base could total 386.9 million. At present, the United States contributes three-quarters of Twitter’s revenue, according to the company itself. The firm’s study divided the company’s user base on the basis of region and country, analyzing around 400 data points from over 90 sources, including company releases, survey, and traffic data research firms and regulatory agencies, historical trends, Internet and mobile adoption trends, and country specific demographic and socio-economic factors.
Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR), once dubbed “the next Facebook,” has sustained stagnant user growth in the first two quarters as a public company, as its shares are trading near its post-IPO low.
At 10.44 am on Wednesday, Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) shares were up 3.57% to $31.59.
