Today, everything gets computerized. Along with this trend of computerization, Internet has indeed become something that perfects the way humans communicate. Having said that, what’s the next big thing, then? Easy, it’s mobile.

More and more people apply mobile-based technology to revolutionize their lifestyle nowadays. Such technology allows them having the world in their own hands. The easy yet vast adoption of mobile technology also leads to much more equal distribution of internet. It is this point which makes Facebook via its Internet.org enthusiastically promoting the use of internet through mobile devices in numerous countries, including Indonesia.

According to the “Mobile Is Eating The World” by Andreessen Horowitz, the significant increase of smartphone users would be the root of the increase of global internet users by 2020. The proportion of non-internet users would keep decreasing until the point where there would be only 25% of them. At that point, 80% of adults will own at least one smartphone.

Well, actually it’s not an uncommon point to know. Last October, GfK conducted a research and found out that the growth of smartphone sales in Southeast Asia will keep being in a positive trend. In Indonesia, the growth had even reached 70% in the past 12 months. By 2020, it is predicted that the number of smartphone users will be 2 to 3 times higher than PC users, thus opening 10 times more opportunities for people than what is available today.

In result, the mobile industry is inevitably flooded by developers and startup entrepreneurs. Mobile is indeed expected to ease humans activities by providing them with specially-designed features such as location based service, flexibility, sensor, and camera. This should be more than enough to lure Indonesian local startups to seriously enter the industry.

[Illustration: Shutterstock]