Professional social media network LinkedIn has launched LinkedIn Lite, a newer, faster mobile app for Android, in India to accommodate users where data networks tend be slower and less reliable, reports TechCrunch. Users in India don’t have to opt-in to use the new app. They will automatically see the mobile web lite version as soon as it is available.

LinkedIn Lite is only available for Android, and it can be downloaded from the Google Play Store. According to TechCrunch, in India, 97 percent of all smartphones are Android-based, so an iOS version is unlikely. LinkedIn plans to expand to more than 60 more countries soon.

Unfortunately, however, LinkedIn Lite does not contain premium features for subscribers including background images, premium insights in the job details page, search filters, InMail messages or LinkedIn Learning, says LinkedIn. Users can access the regular LinkedIn mobile app or LinkedIn on their desktop computer to use premium features.

The LinkedIn Lite app is less than 1 MB in size, cutting down data usage by 80 percent and reducing load time to five seconds or less. While premium features aren’t available, LinkedIn Lite still offers the platform’s core functionality:

• Search for people, alumni, seniors, jobs and companies
• See all kinds of jobs including government positions, MNC jobs, entry level jobs, tech and software jobs and more
• Connect with others who might help you find a job
• Chat with connections to get referrals and career advice
• Create a professional profile to help you showcase your education, skills, work experience, volunteer service, projects and more
• Get industry news and updates

Users can access these functions through icons in the LinkedIn Lite navigation bar:

• Home: Read your LinkedIn Feed with updates and posts from connections, groups and companies you follow
• Jobs: See job recommendations based on your profile information. Preferences can be changed on your desktop. Users can also apply for jobs within LinkedIn Lite.
• Network: Access pending invitations and People You May Know.
• Profile: Review and edit your professional profile.
• Messaging: Send and receive messages to and from your connections.
• Notifications: Receive daily updates about articles, posts, accepted invitations, likes, shares, comments, Who’s Viewed Your Profile metrics, and messages.

LinkedIn Lite was initially launched as a lightweight mobile website last September, says Ad Week. To date, LinkedIn Lite has been installed between 1,000 and 5,000 times, and it has been reviewed by 103 users and has an average rating of 4.6 stars out of 5.0 in the Google Play store.

Insider Take:

In April 2016, LinkedIn announced that it was investing $59 million in a data center in Jurong, Singapore to improve speed and reliability to more than 85 million members in the Asia Pacific. This total includes 34 million members in India, so a product that meets those customers’ needs is a smart business move. At that time, Olivier Legrand, manager director of LinkedIn in Asia Pacific, said, “Asia Pacific is our fastest growing region in terms of member base outside of the U.S. We are investing to make sure we continue to provide a great experience as our business continues to grow in this region.”

It looks like they are keeping that promise with the new LinkedIn Lite. Now with Microsoft’s backing, we anticipate further investments by LinkedIn in this region as well as other emerging markets where they product can have a significant impact.

From a subscription standpoint, however, we wonder how LinkedIn will handle its subscription business with its new Lite version. Customers who pay for premium features will still need to use the full website or mobile app to access those. Will this impact LinkedIn’s subscriber retention rate, or will users just toggle back and forth between Lite and either the desktop website or full mobile app?