Amazon quietly launches lite Internet browser for Android devices in India

Amazon did not respond to queries regarding the new browser.

Internet joins the other lite applications such as Google and Facebook as its size is less than 2MB. These apps are built to appeal to users of low-end devices who encounter slow internet speeds and buy smaller sachets of data from providers.

The application is only available to users in India for the time being, and is supported on devices running Android 5.0 or higher versions.

Amazon claim that Internet does not store any private data compared to other browsers seem to have gained attraction of many users as the news of Facebook's data breach is still doing rounds and has alerted users on data privacy issue.

The description of the app shows that the homepage of the browser will be populated by cricket, entertainment and news from top sources.

Amazon already has Silk browser for the Android platform that runs on its Kindle tablets, but that app isn’t available on the Amazon app store in India.

Internet could be part of Amazon’s larger strategy to customise its offerings for its users in India as the app seems to be customized for an Indian user. Amazon smart speakers, Echo, also targets an Indian audience and the company has also tied up extensively with regional music producers to bring the right content on its Prime Music, an add-on service for Prime customers.