Open internet advertising opportunities have never been greater: Emily Yri – Exchange4Media

With advancements in technology, CTV in India is expected to improve in terms of video quality, user interface and personalization. AI-powered recommendation engines, interactive content and voice-based assistants are likely to become more common in the CTV space.

According to Statista, “multichannel TV advertising revenue worldwide is set to reach 43.1 billion US dollars in 2022, up from 40.7 billion estimated for 2021. By the end of 2025, this figure is expected to grow further to nearly 45 billion dollars. Meanwhile, CTV advertising is expected to see impressive growth over the coming years, and nearly equal that of multichannel TV ad revenue by the end of 2025, only differing by one billion dollars at that time.”

And as per multiple reports published by CII & KPMG, EY-FICCI and MediaSmart, CTV penetration in India ranged around 10-14 million homes in 2022, though that number is not universally agreed on, especially given that they are rising daily.

“It’s true that TV viewership is becoming more fragmented and connected TV (CTV) presents an opportunity for brands and advertisers to reach a wider audience across multiple TV touchpoints,” said Rajiv Rajagopal, National Head- Client Development, Finecast India (GroupM), adding that with an estimated 25 million households using CTV in India at present, which represents around 12% of the overall TV viewing population, it’s clear that CTV is a significant player in the Indian market.

Talking about CTV advertising in particular, Vishal Singh, Country Head-India, Xapads Media, says the vertical in India is likely to grow rapidly, as brands and marketers recognize the potential of this platform to reach highly engaged audiences. “CTV advertising provides better targeting, more precise measurements, and greater interactivity than traditional TV advertising. So, focusing on India’s growing domestic demand, the rollout of CTV will touch each nook and corner of the country wherein, the push for digitalization from the Indian government is expected to further fuel the growth.”

About four months back, GroupM commissioned a study in partnership with Kantar and learned 84% of the TV respondents who participated in a survey believed that TV ads have a major impact on their purchase decision and 63% of CTV users think the ads shown to them are more personalized on TV.

“We are seeing a surge in demand for CTV advertising since 2021. Sporting events like IPL and World Cup further boost the demand. We are estimating a 47% CAGR on CTV ad spends in the next five years. CTV and streaming consumption have been steadily increasing, driven by factors such as the growth of affordable high-speed internet access, the proliferation of streaming platforms and high growth in Smart TV penetration,” says Rajagopal. 

He adds, “Innovation in advertising, such as shoppable ads and QR code ads, could certainly provide more ways to measure consumer intent and potentially improve the effectiveness of advertising campaigns. These types of ads allow viewers to interact with the ad and take immediate action, which can provide valuable data on consumer behaviour and preferences.”

One of the benefits of CTV is its ability to provide more precise targeting for ads. Advertisers can use demographic, location, and interest data to create ads that are more relevant to CTV viewers. This can help increase engagement and drive more Linear TV consumers to CTV.

Prabhvir Sahmey, Samsung Ads Senior Director India Lead, refers to it as “the toothbrush test’, a legacy of his days at Google, where Google co-founder and former CEO Larry Page said companies and products that worked were those that consumers returned to at least once or twice a day.

And while Connected TV isn’t quite there yet, experts believe we’re moving closer every day. For instance, Sahmey says, “In India, Samsung TVs are at about 6.7 million and we expect to cross total active TVs to 11 million in 2023.”

Singh notes, “A few years back in 2016, CTV advertising had a global market share of $5.5 billion and by 2026, it will hold a market share of $32.6 billion due to the paradigm shifts from TV to OTT and now in Connected TV. Currently, it is making its mark and proving to be a driving force for catching millions of eyeballs towards the biggest screens as compared to portable smartphones and devices since it complements OTT.”

Indeed this migration from mobile viewing to CTV devices is going to be a big factor in the growth of the medium. Following the recent release of their annual Mobile Apps Report, Simon “Bobby” Dussart, CEO of Adjust, said, “Delivering highly customized, seamless user experiences, executing on cross-platform campaigns, and tapping into the potential of new channels, such as connected TV, will prove invaluable for marketers and developers seeking sustained and strategic growth in 2023 and beyond.”

Emily Yri, Vice President, International Marketing, Pubmatic, says that with demand is soaring for quality CTV programming and advertisers and publishers both stand to benefit. And as macro-economic conditions continue to bite, consumers are increasingly seeking ad-supported content experiences to offset other household budgetary priorities.

She points out that on linear TV, advertisers know exactly where their ad will appear – the network, show, ad slot, genre and rating of the content – which gives them confidence in the safety and appropriateness of that content. This level of brand safety is one of the primary reasons linear TV spend has remained so strong, despite heavy shifts in viewership to streaming channels.

“We can offer the same level of transparency on CTV with content object signals. Content objects are information that publishers can pass through the bidstream to give advertisers valuable information on the inventory they’re buying. These signals can include network, show, genre, ratings and other key pieces of information that allow advertisers to know precisely where their ads will be running,” she says.

Rajagopal concludes, “As a result, we can expect that brands and advertisers are likely to follow the trend of shifting their advertising dollars towards CTV and streaming platforms to reach the growing audience. Moreover, CTV and streaming viewers are often considered to be high-value consumers as they tend to have higher purchase intent and are more likely to engage with ads that are relevant and personalized to their interests. Hence, brands and advertisers may see higher returns on their advertising investment when targeting CTV and streaming audiences in India.”

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