Streaming gains ground in India as 82 per cent watch more than last year

MUMBAI: Streaming is no longer just filling the gaps between television appointments; for many urban Indians, it is becoming the appointment. A new study by advertising technology company Magnite finds that 82 per cent of respondents are streaming more content than they were a year ago, while 74 per cent use ad-supported streaming services.

The report, Streams & Screens: India, also points to continued appetite for new streaming subscriptions, with 71 per cent of respondents saying they plan to subscribe to a new service over the next 12 months.

The shift is creating a bigger canvas for connected TV (CTV) advertising, particularly as streaming increasingly becomes a shared-screen activity. 86 per cent of CTV viewers said they regularly watch content with other people, giving advertisers an opportunity to reach more than one viewer at a time and potentially strengthen brand recall.

Cricket remains one of the biggest draws. Three in four respondents regularly stream the sport, while 85 per cent said they are more likely to watch cricket with others than on-demand content. Among CTV owners, almost all respondents reported watching cricket on the big screen.

But the sports-viewing journey does not necessarily stay on one screen. Consumers increasingly shift between CTV and mobile devices while following live sport, with phones extending viewing to commutes, travel and working hours.

That cross-screen habit appears to have a bearing on advertising response. 78 per cent of respondents said they were more likely to take action after seeing an advertisement across multiple devices.

Sahil Bansal, Country Lead, India at Magnite, said brands need to look at how consumers experience content across screens rather than treating each channel in isolation. He said strategies aligned with changing viewing habits could help brands build awareness, reinforce messaging and improve campaign performance.

Short-form video is also firmly in the mix. 93 per cent of respondents regularly watch addressable vertical video content, while 31 per cent said they had purchased a product after seeing an advertisement in the format.

Live streaming, meanwhile, is emerging as another strong advertising environment. Nearly all respondents said they stream live content at least once a month, while 79 per cent said they were more likely to remember brands advertising during live-streamed events.

And when it comes to making an impression, language still matters. The study found that 78 per cent of respondents believe advertisements delivered in the same language as the content they are watching are more effective, highlighting the role of local culture and content preferences in shaping advertising impact.

For advertisers, the takeaway is increasingly clear: India’s streaming audience is not choosing between screens so much as using all of them. The challenge now is making sure the brand message travels with them.