According to The Connected TV Era, a new report launched on 19 August by WPP Media and The Trade Desk, with research conducted by Ormax Media, India’s connected TV (CTV) viewership has tripled since 2022 to 207 million viewers across 62-65 million households. More on the report here.

The scale is increasingly forcing advertisers to rethink how television is planned, bought and measured.

That shift was at the centre of The CMO Lens panel, following the report’s unveiling, comprising Tejas Apte, head - media and digital marketing, Unilever, and Priyanka Puri, senior vice president - marketing, Hygienic Research Institute (HRIPL).

The session was moderated by Meeta Gupta, director - client relations, The Trade Desk.

The duo discussed what the growth of CTV means for marketers, from how consumers move across screens to household viewing behaviour, cost efficiencies, targeting, CTV’s role in a broader video strategy and what advertisers need to do with this changing reality.

Starting the discussion, Apte shared that the first shift needs to happen in how marketers think about audiences.

Consumers move between platforms and networks without necessarily making the distinctions that media planners do, according to Apte.

“The shift required is twofold. One, from the marketers' point of view, it is important to understand that consumers don't differentiate between CPV and VAT. They are switching between platforms and networks. As long as we keep that consumer understanding at the heart, I think we'll answer most of our doubts,” voiced Apte.

He stated that growing advertiser interest in CTV reflects its increasing scale and impact, with more money moving towards the medium.

Apte added, “CTV is an emerging growth. It's about 20-25% of engagement. From the numbers that we have, we're trying to move it.”

He expects marketers to continue moving budgets towards CTV, but said this will depend on whether the medium can demonstrate tangible outcomes.

“It's growing at low rates, as was said before, and you would see more marketers moving their budgets towards CTV. If there are tangible outcomes to moving budgets to CTV, then yes, marketers will move money there,” Apte added. 

CTV’s experience has to justify the premium

Puri said CTV’s expansion into tier two and tier three markets is opening up new possibilities for advertisers, but efficiency remains a consideration.

“The good part is that it gives marketers quality and some sense of precision targeting. But it's still not really reached a level where the efficiencies come from the cost perspective,” she shared.

For mass brands, Puri said, the question is how much of a premium they are willing to pay for that audience.

CTV’s biggest difference is that it is a household screen

The report’s finding that a CTV impression reaches an average of 2.5 people raises a fundamental planning question around what constitutes an impression when the screen is shared.

Apte said CTV needs to be understood in the context of the living room rather than through the lens of personal devices.

He remarked, “Most households are not choosing between Star Plus or JioHotstar. When you planned for TV, one knew that they were targeting the whole family watching. And the same approach needs to be applied to CTV. Marketers don’t need to view it on the basis of individual exposure. It is still a household watch. Good media planners would know that.”

Apte also argued that CTV should not be treated as a standalone platform as marketers increasingly plan across multiple screens.

“We have to view CTV as a video basket overall and shouldn’t be viewing this as a standalone platform. The risk concept should be clear, and one needs to find ways and means to allocate the right amount of budget in their media plan,” Apte expressed.

He also pointed to the television set replacement cycle as another factor that could accelerate CTV adoption.

Measurement will determine how far CTV can go

Beyond reach and experience, Puri said marketers will increasingly assess CTV on conversion and audience signals.

Puri said CTV is still operating at a pin code level in terms of targeting and has yet to match digital on efficiency in certain cases.

For marketers, that means balancing CTV’s scale and quality against the efficiencies offered by other digital channels.

Looking ahead, Apte expects CTV advertising to become more interactive as the medium develops.

“As a consumer, we will see more ads, and it will become more interactive and not broadcast-themed," he remarked.

According to Puri, CTV could create new opportunities for smaller and regional brands that have traditionally had a smaller share of television budgets.

She left the audience with the view that better measurement could help CTV move beyond top-of-funnel awareness into the mid and lower funnel by linking audience signals to consumer behaviour and outcomes.

Signing off, Puri shared, “Measurement and audience signals could help CTV move beyond the top of the funnel into the mid and lower funnel by connecting audience exposure with actual consumer behaviour and outcomes.”