India’s digital landscape is evolving rapidly, reshaping how consumers interact with content and offering new opportunities for marketers. The rise of the open internet is a major trend in this transformation, challenging the dominance of major platforms like Facebook, Google, and YouTube. For marketers, the open internet provides a dynamic, flexible, and precise way to reach a large and engaged audience.
The open internet encompasses a variety of digital platforms, apps, websites, and media outlets that offer free content supported by advertising. This includes over-the-top (OTT) streaming services, connected TV (CTV), music streaming platforms, online gaming, mobile apps, news outlets, and blogs. In India, this ecosystem has attracted around 640 million users, with expectations for continued growth as internet penetration deepens.
A key development is the rise of OTT/CTV platforms, such as Zee5, Voot, and JioTV, which have become popular among younger audiences, especially Gen Z and millennials. This demographic, aged 18-34, increasingly prefers professionally produced content on OTT/CTV over social media platforms like YouTube. Research indicates that younger viewers are 55% more likely to perceive brands that advertise on OTT/CTV as premium compared to those on YouTube.
Despite high engagement on the open internet, there is a significant gap in ad spending. Indians spend 52% of their digital time on the open internet, yet only 15% of ad dollars are allocated there. This presents a substantial opportunity for advertisers to align spending with consumer behavior. Trends in India are expected to mirror those in more mature markets like the U.S., where walled gardens accounted for less than half of all digital ad spending by 2023.
Understanding the digital habits of younger audiences is crucial for leveraging the open internet. These users spend more time on OTT/CTV and music streaming services, and they are actively engaged on these platforms. Unlike social media, where users often passively scroll through content, users on the open internet are in “lean-in” mode, actively seeking out content, shopping, or interacting with media. This higher engagement level makes them more receptive to ads.
Online gaming is another key area for young adults, with 70% of younger Indians expecting to spend more time on gaming in the future. Gaming platforms not only provide a highly engaging environment but also generate high ad recall, with 25% of young adults remembering ads from gaming platforms compared to one-sixth who recall ads on YouTube.
Music streaming platforms like Spotify, Wynk Music, and JioSaavn have also become trusted advertising spaces. Younger users find ads on these platforms 41% less intrusive compared to older adults, making music streaming a valuable channel for brands targeting a younger audience.
Trust is a critical factor in advertising success. OTT/CTV platforms are considered the most trustworthy digital channels among young adults in India, with 43% finding ads on these platforms trustworthy. This trust extends to music streaming platforms, which also score higher in ad trustworthiness compared to social media.
For marketers, the implications are clear: to effectively reach and engage younger audiences, it is essential to utilize the open internet’s diverse platforms. Whether through OTT/CTV, online gaming, or music streaming, the open internet offers a premium environment for connecting with engaged users, building trust, and fostering brand loyalty. It also provides greater precision and transparency in advertising compared to walled gardens, allowing brands to use first-party data for more targeted campaigns and gain a comprehensive understanding of consumer behavior.
As India’s digital consumption patterns evolve, the open internet will play an increasingly vital role in the advertising landscape. Marketers who adapt their strategies to embrace this shift will be well-positioned to seize the vast opportunities available in India’s dynamic digital ecosystem.
