How lockdown due to coronavirus has changed TV consumption in India

Week 14 recorded 38% growth over pre-COVID-19 at 1.2 trillion minutes. According to a recent report by Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), TV consumption in India grew by 38 per cent over the pre-COVID period.

People are now watching TV all seven days with an increase of 47 per cent viewership.

Number of channels watched during the week increased to 23 in the 13th week of 2020 and 22 in the 14th week from just 16 channels during 11 Jan to 31 Jan.

All states in India have witnessed an increase in TV consumption after COVID-19, as its one of the main options for entertainment and information, during lockdown for people.

The growth has been driven by younger audiences; viewership in the 2-14 years group has risen by 20%, followed by 15-21 years (7%) and 31-40 years(6%).

Growth in all languages has been driven by news consumption. In Hindi, for example, news has grown by 62%, followed by movies (13%). When it comes to OTT, the disruption caused by COVID-19 gave a big fillip to education apps, along with streaming services. The top content picked by the audience includes fiction, thriller, history, news, supernatural, and mythology.

Non-Prime is still the driver for TV viewership growth in week 14. Non-Prime time viewership has increased to 96% in the Hindi speaking market and 51% in the south domain.

The report also stated that the consumption of Hindi as a language has grown, with mythology driving the growth, thanks to the re-runs of classic shows like 'Ramayana' and 'Mahabharata'.