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HD TV sets a dominant trend in the US: Nielsen
MUMBAI: Television has come a long way since the grainy black and white sets of old. While there have been constant advances-from the introduction of colour to the remote control to connected TVs (IPTV)-the advent of High Definition TV (HDTV) could be considered one of the high water marks.
In fact, as HD continues to revolutionise the quality of the TV watching experience, more than three quarters of US households have an HDTV set-that‘s up 14 per cent from last year, according to a recent study by Nielsen.
What‘s more is that nearly 40 per cent of those homes have multiple HD sets. The figure is likely to continue to trend upwards as bulky standard definition sets are swapped out for sleeker and more technologically-sophisticated models.
Not all HD is equal: In May 2012, 61 per cent of all prime viewing was done on an HD set, but that does not necessarily denote actual HD viewing was happening. “True” HD, using an HD set top box or tuner in a home that receives HD channels and actually tuned to an HD signal, is the only way to experience legitimate HDTV bliss.
During that same month, 29 percent of English-language broadcast prime viewing and 25 percent of cable prime viewing was “True HD.”
The gap between HD potential and true HD viewing leaves a wide berth for consumers to bridge. The study also noted that among cable networks, as expected, sports and entertainment genres are more likely to be viewed in HD as compared to news and kids programming.
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Inshorts Group chief Deepit Purkayastha joins IAB video council for Southeast Asia and India
The co-founder and chief executive of the short-form content platform has been inducted into the IAB SEA+India Video Council, giving India a stronger voice in shaping digital video frameworks
NOIDA: India has long been the world’s most chaotic, multilingual and mobile-first digital market. Now, one of its most prominent short-video executives is getting a seat at the table where the rules are written.
Deepit Purkayastha, co-founder and chief executive of Inshorts Group, has been selected as a member of the IAB SEA+India Video Council for 2026. Run by the Interactive Advertising Bureau, the council brings together senior leaders from Southeast Asia and India to shape standards, best practices and measurement frameworks for the fast-evolving video and digital advertising ecosystem.
The timing is pointed. According to the IAMAI-Kantar Internet in India Report 2025, over 588 million Indians are now consuming short-video content, with growth increasingly driven by rural and non-metro audiences. India’s active internet user base has crossed 950 million, with 57 per cent of users now coming from rural markets. Yet the frameworks that govern how video consumption is measured and monetised were largely designed for single-language, Western markets and have struggled to keep pace with the scale, diversity and complexity of India’s digital landscape.
Purkayastha is no stranger to these debates. He already serves on the AI Council at Marketing and Media Alliance India and as co-chair of the Digital Entertainment Committee at the Internet and Mobile Association of India. His induction into the IAB SEA+India Video Council extends that influence into the global video standards arena.
Inshorts Group sits squarely at the intersection of these forces. Its flagship product, Inshorts, India’s highest-rated short news app, reaches 12 million active users with 60-word news summaries. Its sister platform, Public App, reaches 80 million monthly active users across more than 700 districts and 12 languages, serving communities that most global platforms barely register.
Purkayastha said the opportunity was about building something more representative. “India today sits at the centre of the global video ecosystem, but the frameworks that define how value is created and measured have not always kept pace with the realities of our market,” he said. “Being part of the IAB SEA+India Video Council is an opportunity to contribute to a more representative and future-ready approach, one that accounts for diversity in language, context, and user intent.”
As a council member, Purkayastha will contribute to shaping regional standards across video advertising, measurement and platform governance, with a focus on frameworks that are native to India’s multilingual, mobile-first ecosystem rather than imported from global benchmarks designed elsewhere.
For years, India has been content to play by rules written for other markets. Purkayastha’s induction is a signal that it is done waiting to be consulted and ready to start writing them.
