In line with the growth of internet users, the number of social network users in the BRIC countries is forecast to grow. By 2021, India is projected to have about 358 million social network users, and Brazil is expected to have 114 million users of social networking sites. In 2019, it is estimated that there will be nearly 80 million social network users in Russia. India and Brazil have the largest base of Facebook users in the group – 136 million and 103 million as of November 2015. Besides Facebook, LinkedIn, GooglePlus, Twitter and Tumblr are the most popular social network sites in Brazil based on unique visitors. Facebook is blocked in China and not as popular in Russia as in other countries. VK (VKontakte) is a popular social networking service in Russia, while QQ, WZone, WeChat and Baidu Tieba are the leading social networking sites in China based on active users.
Another trend in the BRIC countries’ internet usage is the rise of mobile internet. The rapid growth in smartphone and tablet users has helped boost mobile internet use. In China, the number of mobile internet users is projected to increase from an estimate of 630 million in 2016 to 664 million in 2018. Projections are optimistic for the Indian market as well. The number of mobile phone internet users in India is estimated to jump from 323 million in 2016 to 524.5 million in 2021. Mobile internet penetration in Brazil is also expected to grow aggressively, with forecasts to reach about 52 percent by 2021.
