At the e4m Connected TV Conference held in Mumbai on May 9, Pankaj Krishna, Founder and CEO, Chrome Data Analytics and Media (Chrome DM) shed light on India's burgeoning Connected TV (CTV) market and shared valuable insights. He showcased a presentation about ‘Scaling Data-Driven CTV’ including many interesting data points.
Krishna opened his session by highlighting that while there are nearly 70 million connected TV households in India, a significant number only sample CTV occasionally. "The frequency TV numbers are at about 26 million, which the industry keeps talking about," Krishna noted while talking about the size of the engaged CTV audience.
The presentation delved into how Indians access connected TV content. Interestingly, an 80/20 rule applies, with 80% of viewers utilising built-in smart TV features and Wi-Fi hotspots. The remaining 20% rely on external devices like Amazon Fire Sticks or brand-specific options like Tata Play Binge.
Krishna also unveiled market share details for CTV operating systems, revealing a landscape similar to linear TV with multiple players. Samsung's Tizen OS leads the pack, followed by Android-based systems and proprietary platforms from LG and Sony.
The presentation offered a breakdown of the Indian television landscape. Only 60 million households subscribe to traditional pay TV, with a small but growing segment (around 11 million) identified as cord-cutters who rely solely on internet-based options like CTV. The intersection of viewers having both traditional pay TV and CTV subscriptions is estimated to be around 1 million.
Krishna painted an optimistic picture for CTV growth, projecting a staggering 316 million connected TV households within the next three years. This suggests that nearly every household will have a connected TV, with traditional pay TV and free-to-air options becoming subsets of the connected TV universe.
A key takeaway from the presentation was the emphasis on the nature of the connected TV audience. "The connected universe is very addressable," Krishna pointed out. "And you get data live day-on-day, week-on-week, and live later."
Talking about the future of CTV, Krishna added, “As far as the future is concerned, in the next three years, we project about 316 million connected TVs. So every house practically in the next year would have a connected TV to a great extent.”
Krishna’s presentation also comprised data on popular CTV platforms and content. Sony Liv and Prime Video emerged as leaders in terms of unique users reached in December 2023. Krishna also engaged the audience in guessing the most-watched shows in 2023, ultimately revealing that "Sa Re Ga Ma Pa" took the top spot.
