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Next 100 Million CTV Viewers to Reshape Content Economy, Driven by Rural India
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Storyboard•23-09-2026, 09:35
Next 100 Million CTV Viewers to Reshape Content Economy, Driven by Rural India
- •The next phase of Connected TV (CTV) growth is expected to come from non-metros and rural India, expanding beyond its initial metro-heavy base.
- •India's monthly CTV audience has reached over 200 million viewers across 62-65 million households, tripling since 2022.
- •The expansion into smaller cities and rural markets could shift content dominance, with Free Ad-Supported Streaming Television (FAST) gaining traction due to its family-friendly, subscription-free model.
- •Advertisers see a significant opportunity in rural CTV for categories like healthcare, combining television's storytelling with digital's measurability.
- •The industry is moving towards an omnichannel approach, defining audiences first and reaching them across platforms, with content and nuanced measurement being key challenges for CTV's evolution.
Key Questions Answered
According to the CTV India report by The Trade Desk and WPP Media, the monthly connected TV audience exceeds 200 million viewers across approximately 62 million to 65 million households.
The next wave of growth is increasingly expected to come from non-metro cities and rural areas in India, driven by falling smart-TV prices, cheaper data, and mobile hotspot access.
Panel discussions indicate three broad content layers are emerging on CTV: premium subscription-led content, free ad-supported streaming television (FAST), and user-generated or creator content.
