NielsenIQ Study: 78% of Indians Prefer Streaming on TVs, Reveals Amazon

A custom study conducted by NielsenIQ and commissioned by Amazon for TV streaming trends*1 in December 2023, has revealed interesting insights about preferences of Indian audiences to stream their favorite movies and shows. According to the study, 78% respondents prefer streaming online content on their TVs through streaming sticks, smart TVs, and set-top-boxes compared to their other available options like smartphones, tablets and laptops.

Almost 66% of respondents streamed five hours daily over the weekend, as opposed to less than three hours during the weekdays. Additionally, 97% preferred to stream online content on TV around dinner time, and 74% of them watched the same with family especially spouse and children. Per the study, comedy was the most popular genre of content watched by respondents. It was closely followed by sports, thriller, romantic, horror, international TV shows, and news in order of preference.

Preference to stream on TV due to comfort and better viewing experience

In addition to the availability of an active broadband connection at home, people are streaming on TV due to better video and sound quality, and convenience of accessing variety of content across OTT providers and online sources. Ergonomic benefits also contribute to this preference. Viewing on TV may also allow to maintain a comfortable body posture, alleviating the aches and pains sometimes associated with watching content while holding the phone.

Speed matters to Indian viewers

When streaming on TV, the most sought-after features according to the respondents were lag-free streaming (39%), and wide range of OTT Apps (24%). Other preferences were availability of voice assistant for searching content and controlling smart home appliances, and ability to stream online content and live TV shows from DTH channels on a single screen.

“Online video streaming has come a long way since its inception, and so has streaming habits of consumers. What has remained a constant is our preference to view content on the biggest screen in our homes – the television. Fire TV is a convenient way to get your favorite shows, movies, sports, and more on your TV,” said Parag Gupta, Director and Country Manager, Amazon Devices India. “Be it to stream content on your older non-smart TV, or get more out of your existing smart TV, the Fire TV stick provides a faster streaming experience, simpler content discovery with Alexa’s universal voice search, and access to 12,000+ apps across genres to users. We are encouraged by the popularity of Fire TV, rated 4+ stars consistently by users.”

Based on a study conducted by NielsenIQ in October 2023*2, it was noted that Fire TV offers the most advanced TV streaming experience to customers.

*1: The study was conducted by NielsenIQ and commissioned by Amazon for TV streaming trends in December 2023 across 12 major cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad. The sample size included 800 respondents between the ages 25-45 years, with a demographic distribution of New Consumer Classification System (NCCS) under socio-economic level– A. 

*2: The study was conducted by NielsenIQ in October 2023 in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, and Kolkata. The sample size included 311 respondents between the ages 25-45 years, with a demographic distribution of New Consumer Classification System (NCCS) under socio-economic level– A.

“Estimates and values are incomplete and unreliable, do not accurately represent Amazon’s position within a segment, and do not include the full set of substitutable products available to customers. These data limitations likely underestimate segment shares and understate the impact of competitors in the segment.” While the report has been prepared by Nielsen, it is clarified that the conclusion, views and findings have not been verified by Amazon and the shares noted are an estimate by Nielsen.”