Kantar has launched Media Compass 2025, a report aimed at providing a comprehensive view of media consumption trends in India across television, digital, and print platforms.
The report, based on a rolling annual sample of 87,000 consumers with quarterly updates, seeks to offer data on media reach, cross-media interaction, engagement levels, and the role of influencers. It is designed to support more data-informed decisions in media planning.
According to findings from Q1 2025, the Indian media landscape is shifting, with digital use increasing across age groups, genders, and regions. While linear television maintains strong reach, digital-only usage and Connected TV (CTV) adoption are expanding, particularly among younger, male, and rural audiences.
CTV now has 35 million new viewers, and although 58% of Indians still watch linear television monthly, CTV is gaining ground. The report identifies a 23% segment of the population that consumes digital media exclusively, without watching linear TV. This group is largely made up of younger and rural audiences.
CTV and digital-only audiences are both 57% male, in contrast to linear TV’s more balanced gender distribution. Age also plays a role in platform preference: those aged 15–34 lean towards digital (55%), OTT (55%), and social media (57%), while individuals aged 45 and above are more likely to watch linear television (44%).
Rural areas now account for 74% of digital-only users and 75% of linear TV viewers, with CTV also showing equal reach in both urban and rural areas. The report also notes a divergence based on socio-economic classifications. Digital-only users are more common in lower NCCS groups, while CTV viewers are concentrated in the NCCS A segment.
Commenting on the report, Puneet Avasthi, Director, Specialist Businesses, Insights Division- South Asia, Kantar, said, “In today’s fragmented and fast-evolving media landscape, brands are under pressure to make every media rupee count. Yet, most decisions are still being made using outdated or incomplete data, leading to suboptimal media planning and missed connections with consumers. Media Compass 2025 aims to correct this and equip advertisers with timely, in-depth insights across platforms — enabling smarter media planning, stronger audience engagement and sharper targeting for maximum impact.”
