The Indian OTT audience universe is now estimated at 601.2 million (or 60.12 Crore) people, representing 41.1% of the country’s population, according to the fifth edition of The Ormax OTT Audience Report: 2025.  

The report pegs India’s active connected TV user base at 129.2 million, which translates to an estimated 35-40 million connected TV homes. Connected TV penetration in India has grown by a staggering 87% within a single year.

The growth rate of India’s OTT universe is 10%, which is below the growth rates (13-14%) seen in 2023 and 2024. The report defines an OTT audience as anyone who watched at least one online video (free or paid) during the past month. The report breaks down this universe by gender, age, media affluence, pop strata, states, and cities. 

The report estimates the total number of active paid OTT subscriptions (defined as used at least once in the last one month) at 148.2 million, including subscriptions through telecom bundles and OTT aggregators.

The 2025 edition of the report includes several new parameters, widening the scope of the report. 

Shailesh Kapoor, founder and CEO, Ormax Media, said, “We launched The Ormax OTT Audience Report in 2021 to create credible third-party data for India’s OTT industry through rigorous primary research. Each edition has strengthened in scope and depth, offering insights with significant business impact for platforms, advertisers, content creators, and investors. This year, the sharp rise in the Connected TV audience base is particularly striking for a market long regarded as mobile-first.”

Keerat Grewal, head: business development (Streaming, TV and Brands), Ormax Media, added, “In response to feedback from industry leaders, we have expanded the 2025 edition to include new sections on time spent on digital content, preferred languages, content formats, and media habits. These additions enrich the report with valuable insights on content consumption, complementing its established focus on business and monetization.”

The study to size and profile the country’s OTT universe is based on a sample size of 15,600 respondents across urban and rural India, and the research was conducted in June and July of 2025.