Introduction: TV Advertising in Transition
For decades, linear TV has ruled Indian households—bringing families together in front of their screens for primetime shows, cricket, and news. But as digital connectivity deepens and smart TVs become mainstream, Connected TV (CTV) is fast becoming the new favorite.
So, where should your brand invest in 2025? Traditional linear TV or Connected TV?
In this article, we compare both formats through the lens of ROI, targeting, clutter, and more- helping you decide what works best for your next media plan.
New to CTV? Start with our comprehensive guide What Is CTV Advertising? Discover How It Works (2025) to learn the basics, audience insights, ad formats, and planning tips before diving into the comparison.
The Big Shift: From Mass Reach to Measurable Returns
Linear TV:
- Fantastic for broad, top-of-the-funnel brand visibility.
- Limited audience insights. You’re largely flying blind on real engagement.
- Measurement depends on TRPs—a sampling method that’s becoming outdated.
Connected TV:
- Allows measurement of impressions, view-through rates (VTR), and even purchase intent.
- Brands can track outcomes via tools like Ads Data Hub and Brand Lift Studies.
- Flexible budgeting: start small and scale based on performance.
India’s Shift from Pay TV to Connected TV (2019–2025)
This chart highlights a dramatic transformation in India’s TV consumption landscape. Over the past five years, Pay TV households have plateaued and begun declining, especially in urban India, while Connected TV (CTV) adoption has surged.
- 📉 Pay TV: Traditional cable and DTH subscriptions are losing steam due to rising costs, limited content flexibility, and the growing popularity of OTT platforms.
- 📈 CTV Growth: With the rise of affordable smart TVs, regional AVOD content, and better broadband access, more households are turning to CTV as their primary entertainment screen.
According to EY and ICRA, India is expected to reach 80 million CTV households by 2025, while Pay TV continues its slow decline.
- What it means for brands:
CTV combines the reach of television with the precision of digital—making it the smarter choice for media planning in 2025.
🔍 Example:
YouTube CTV campaigns delivered 5x higher awareness lift compared to linear TV ads, according to YouTube Spotlight 2023.
Targeting Precision: Spray and Pray vs. Sniper Mode
| Feature | Linear TV | Connected TV |
| Audience Targeting | Broad demographic buckets | Hyper-specific: Age, location, ZIP, affinity, device behavior |
| Measurement Tools | BARC Panels, TRP | DV360, YouTube Ads, Ads Data Hub |
| Ad Buying Model | Fixed slots, pre-paid | Flexible, outcome-based |
🎯 Pro Insight: L’Oréal India used YouTube CTV + mobile sync to drive 83% surge in product search interest during its IPL campaign.
Ad Clutter: Who’s Fighting for Eyeballs?
Linear TV:
- High ad clutter during breaks.
- Most viewers mute or switch channels.
Connected TV:
- Fewer ads, often during premium content.
- Greater viewer attention in lean-back mode.
📈 Fact:
Ad recall on CTV was 2X higher than linear TV for urban campaigns – EY M&E Report 2024.
Reach: Tier 1 vs Bharat
Linear TV:
- Still strong across Bharat (Tier 2 and rural markets).
- Over 190M TV households (BARC 2024).
CTV:
- Growing rapidly in urban and semi-urban India.
- From 45M homes in 2023 to 80M expected by 2025 (EY Report).
Cost & Flexibility
| Aspect | Linear TV | Connected TV |
| Entry Cost | ₹5–10 lakhs per spot | ₹2–3 lakhs minimum spend |
| Flexibility | Low (fixed schedule) | High (time, device, geography) |
| Ad Formats | 30-sec TVC | QR, interactive, skip/non-skip, overlay |
💡 Use Case: Want to run a festive burst with shoppable ads? Use CTV for 10-day, high-frequency storytelling.
Verdict: It’s Not Either/Or
Both mediums serve different strategic purposes.
- Linear TV is still king for mass reach, especially in Tier 3 and beyond.
- CTV wins on ROI, precision, and engagement—ideal for urban and digital-first audiences.
🎯 Best practice: Use Linear TV to establish brand presence, then use CTV to reinforce, retarget, and convert.
Real-World Example: How a Brand Integrated CTV into a Multi-Screen Strategy
In a recent award-nominated campaign by a leading home loan provider, the brand successfully demonstrated how CTV can be integrated into a broader media mix to deliver powerful results.
The Strategy:
The campaign launched post-national elections—timed perfectly with the start of the IPL season and a surge in real estate searches. The media mix included:
- CTV via JioCinema (IPL): To target affluent, tech-savvy urban audiences on big screens in a lean-back environment.
- Linear TV (News Channels): To build credibility and deliver mass reach, especially during election news coverage.
- Digital Display + Mobile: For retargeting and performance measurement.
- OOH & Radio: For regional impact and recall.
| Media Channel | Purpose |
| CTV (JioCinema IPL) | Target affluent, urban audiences during prime-time sports |
| Linear TV | Leverage trust during election news coverage |
| Mobile & Display Ads | Drive performance and retargeting |
| Radio + OOH | Localize and reinforce recall |
Results:
- 85% reach across target geographies
- 14% uplift in brand awareness
- Cost per TG reach reduced by 25%
- Significant lift in recall among the 30–44 urban age group
🔍 This proves that CTV isn’t here to replace linear TV—it enhances it. Used smartly, CTV fills precision and frequency gaps while preserving the mass impact of traditional media.
How SMEs & Regional Brands Are Harnessing CTV with Linear TV
Gone are the days when television advertising was the exclusive playground of large, deep-pocketed brands. Today, Connected TV (CTV) is redefining TV advertising by making it accessible, measurable, and regionally targeted—perfect for SMEs and regional advertisers who want the impact of television without the massive spend.
SMEs Getting Smart with CTV
CTV offers SMEs the unique advantage of combining TV-scale impact with digital-like precision. With platforms like YouTube CTV and JioCinema enabling ZIP-code targeting, language-specific campaigns, and device-level optimization, small brands are no longer priced out of the TV game.
“Optimistic about CTV growth and digital advertising, particularly from SMEs,” said Kartik Sharma, CEO of OMG India, in a 2024 industry panel. He emphasized that startups and local brands are beginning to see CTV as an efficient way to access premium inventory and measurable TV exposure【web†source】.
Example from platform guides:
The Media Ant’s own CTV toolkit highlights success stories from SME verticals such as:
- Edtech firms targeting Tier 2 parents via YouTube CTV
- Local fintech players running QR-integrated ads for lead gen
- Retail brands promoting limited-time offers with 6-second non-skippable ads
These brands saw 2–3x brand recall uplift at a fraction of the cost of traditional TV ads.
🌾 Regional Brands Blending Channels
In states like Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal, regional advertisers are now using a hybrid strategy—leveraging local language television for trust-building while using CTV for reach and attribution.
📌 Case Example:
A Gujarat-based real estate brand executed a dual-screen campaign during IPL 2023:
- Linear TV ads on regional news and entertainment channels during the daytime
- YouTube CTV ads during evening primetime in Gujarati, targeting family viewing time
Results:
- 12% increase in quality leads from Tier 2 cities
- 6% drop in cost-per-lead (CPL) compared to linear TV-only campaigns
(Source: Emvies Entry 2024 & campaign partner interviews)
This kind of planning is also supported by data from the EY M&E 2024 and BCG India TV Report, both of which note:
- The rise of NCCS A/B households in smaller towns
- A growing appetite for free, regional content on CTV apps and FAST channels
CTV Results Are Real
CTV is not just about awareness—it’s measurable, adaptable, and conversion-friendly.
Real Case Study (via Kantar & MiQ):
- A homeware brand running a programmatic CTV campaign in urban India saw:
- +19% Ad Awareness
- +11% Brand Favorability
- +10% Purchase Intent
The campaign used ACR (Automated Content Recognition) to serve ads based on viewer interest and language preference. The client considered extending the CTV mix to regional audiences post-pilot.
5 Tips for SMEs & Regional Advertisers Exploring CTV
- Start with a test budget of ₹2–3 lakhs across YouTube CTV or JioCinema.
- Use regional language targeting for local relatability and lower ad fatigue.
- Layer CTV with mobile/video remarketing to boost conversions.
- Combine CTV + Linear TV for a full-funnel strategy: TV for trust, CTV for interaction.
- Track smartly: Use tools like Brand Lift, Search Lift, and QR interactions to measure ROI.
💡 CTV is not just TV for startups—it’s TV made for results.
Final Thoughts: Your Media Mix in 2025
If your brand is still spending 100% of its budget on linear TV—it’s time to rethink. CTV isn’t just a trend—it’s the future of lean-back video consumption in India.
Start blending the best of both worlds.
📌 Next Step: Need a custom recommendation for your campaign? Try The Media Ant’ CTV Ad Planner today.
