Sign up for afaqs! Newsletters
"Total TV viewership grew by 24% in week 18 over pre-COVID period": BARC, Nielsen report
As per the eighth edition of the report on TV and smartphone consumption during the COVID-19 crisis, the highest TV viewership was recorded in week 13.
BARC India and Nielsen released a report on TV and smartphone consumption during the COVID-19 crisis yesterday (May 14). The eighth edition of the report focuses on how media habits are changing as India enters week seven of the national lockdown.
As per the report, total viewership grew by 24 per cent in week 18 over pre-COVID period. A total of 1.10 trillion viewing minutes were recorded. The highest TV viewership was recorded in week 13, post which there has been a gradual drop, though it's significantly higher than pre-COVID levels.
The report suggests that the drop in viewership is more in markets with lower presence of 'red zones'. While non-prime time continues to grow, prime time viewership is seven per cent lower than pre-COVID levels (a result of no original programming). Decline in PT viewership is more pronounced in southern India.
For Hindi general entertainment channels (GECs), the viewership share of the top three channels has dropped versus peak levels attained in week 13 (a result of no original programming). In week 18, overall FCT dropped by nine per cent and there has been a seven per cent decrease in advertiser count.
The report also highlights that smartphone consumption continues to be at four hours per day, 14 per cent higher than the pre-COVID period.
Read the full report here: