Total ad volumes on Indian TV grew 34% in the second half of 2020 compared to the first half, representing a “reassuring” sign that the industry is recovering from what was a “challenging” year, according to the latest data from BARC India. Overall, ad volumes on TV declined by 3% for the whole year.

Key takeaways

  • Hindustan Unilever was the biggest advertiser in 2020 and registered 30% growth in ad volumes over 2019. Reckitt Benckiser Group ranked second and increased their ad volumes by 37% over the previous year.
  • The digital segment saw the highest ad volume growth at 20%, followed by FMCG (9%) and banking, financial services and insurance (9%). However, auto (-23%) and durables (-41%) experienced significant falls.
  • Heightened concerns about health boosted the antiseptics and personal care categories – for example, ad volumes for Dettol Toilet Soaps and Dettol Antiseptic Liquid rose 118% and 136% respectively. Meanwhile, Horlicks ad volumes soared by 60% year on year in 2020.
  • Movies registered the highest growth (9%) in ad volumes among genres, while the general entertainment channel (GEC) genre saw 1% decline.
  • However, Hindi GECs increased ad volumes by 10% year on year, and regional GECs by 8%, although English channels dropped by 52%.

Key quote

“Television continues to be the screen of the household and the most important medium for all the major advertisers to reach their audience pre-pandemic and post-lockdown too. Return of originals along with the festive season and live sporting events boosted the ad volumes, taking the overall growth in ad volumes to 34% as compared to H1 2020 and eventually minimising the reduction in volumes to a marginal -3% for the overall year, as compared to 2019” – Aaditya Pathak, BARC India.

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Sourced from BARC India, Live Mint