India to have 500 million Internet users by June: Experts

New Delhi: The number of Internet users in India will hit 500 million by June and by 2020, the country will have an estimated 702 million smartphone users, experts said here on Thursday.

Mobile phones will emerge as the preferred device for online shopping by 2020, accounting for 70 percent of total online shopping, said the experts at the seventh edition of the India Internet Day in the Capital.

The conference was organised by TiE Delhi-NCR, the world's largest network of successful entrepreneurs and professionals -- attended by over 500 Internet enthusiasts from across the nation.

"With the seventh edition of India Internet Day, we kept a sharp focus on how the entrepreneurs should tap into the emerging user base that hails from the corners of the country," said Geetika Dayal, Executive Director, TiE Delhi-NCR.

"We also focused on the nuances that the startups need to keep in mind to reach out to the next 300 million users," she added.

According to Dilip Asbe, Managing Director, CEO, the National payment Council of India (NPCI), Unified Payments Interface (UPI) clocked 178.05 million transactions worth Rs 24,172.6 crore in March this year.