The Indian E-pharmacy market is growing as a result of some direct reasons such as the rise in the number of Indian populations suffering from chronic clinical indications like diabetes, hypertension, Asthma and Obesity, leading to an increased demand for therapeutics. Besides, government initiatives and programmes such as the digital India, Jan Aushadhi programmes for promotion of generic medicines, telemedicine and E-healthcare initiatives to provide quality healthcare and medications to reach the rural parts of India, where more than 60% of the Indian population resides. These are the key parameters that make the e-pharmacy segment, a burgeoning market of the future. Recently it has emerged as a novel segment in the Indian E-commerce industry. Thisonline mobile app-based pharma segment is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of over 20% by 2024.
As per the data report of Google search trends’, India is among the top five countries where people are searching online medicines buying apps, with some commonly search terms used by them such as ‘buy online medicine’, ‘medical app’, ‘buy medicines. Indian population is reported searching for ‘online medicine apps’ more than any other country (Google Trends). Google's analytical platform and a dominant internet search engine indicated that following to India, Pakistan, UAE and Nepal are the countries in the ranking list where those users are reported searching the medicines and healthcare services by on-line platforms.
This study attempts to determine the consumer's attitude and behavioural associations with their demographic characteristics towards online pharma buying. This paper also tries to contribute theoretical frame work with respect to the Indian context.
Pharma buying, Medicines online, E-Pharma, FDA, Google trends, Search for Medicines
