Android rules in smartphones used for TV content in India: Ditto TV survey

14th January 2013
Android rules  in smartphones used for TV content in India: Ditto TV survey

January 13, 2013: Every third Smartphone user in India uses an Android-based handset to access live entertainment content online while every fifth user prefers a Symbian platform. Blackberry users claim a close third spot, garnering over 17% of the Over The Top TV viewership space. These are  findings  of India’s first ever user-generated data by OTT distribution platform, Ditto TV,  part of the digital arm of Zee Entertainment Enterprises. These findings  were  collected from over 4,25,000 Ditto users who have downloaded the Ditto TV application to their mobiles, tablets and computers.

 Some more findings: Tier II Circles Play Catch-up with Metros

While Mumbai retains its frontline position in terms of adoption of new technologies with 16% of the user base, overall the metro circles, with 26% of the total user base, look to be facing stiff competition from states like (rest of) Maharashtra (11%) and even Rajasthan (7%). The markets of Mumbai, Maharashtra and Gujarat together account for nearly 40% of the total user base. Interestingly, the total time spent on the content in Mumbai is double that in Delhi.

Android trumps Symbian in usage too...Not surprisingly, the maximum usage happens on PCs accounting for 30% of the user base but over 50% of total usage. Android is a close runner up accounting for 25% of overall consumption. Symbian  has 10% just behind Apple (11%)

Entertainment beats News:The Indian mobile user is not only getting smarter with his gadgets, but also with the content that he/she  chooses to watch. With over 29 channels from across categories, such as GEC, movies, news, sports and music besides Video-On-demand available in the OTT format on devices, a varied mix of preferences was shown by the users. 43% of the total time consumed  is spent on GECs – Zee TV (20%) leads the pack followed by Sony and Sab TV. Movies at 16% are the next preferred choice dominated by Zee Cinema. At 14% of total time consumed, regional channels, largely Zee Marathi are the next most popular choice among ditto users. News garners a very respectable 13%, with Zee News, Zee Business, Aaj Tak and Headlines in close competition.

Couch potatoes change screen size:With a mobile in every hand, consumers are finding it convenient to carry their live entertainment in their pocket rather than staying glued to their TV screens. The average Android user devotes around 145 minutes per month to watch this content; Symbian usage in India, on the other hand, is significantly higher at over 272 minutes. Blackberry users in India spend over 116 minutes watching live content. Apple users in India while having a lower penetration still clock up an average 102 minutes.  PC users in India, at a little over 457 minutes, spend significantly more time streaming live content through OTT platform; in contrast with the other platforms.

Bharti rules the smart space:Bharti Airtel, at close to 10% of the user base, is the most preferred network. BSNL, at 6.5%, follows suit in the 2nd place.  Idea at 5.5% is the 3rd most preferred network. Vodafone with over 4% subscribing to it, leads the Blackberry users

Samsung cornered nearly 47% of the market with its Galaxy series, in spite of hundreds of Android-based devices in the market today. This trend is significant with the Android platform having recently overtaken the Symbian platform with a share of 42.4 per cent of the Smartphone market. This might also forebode well for the Canadian manufacturer, whose popularity worldwide seems to be dropping.

Says Vishal Malhotra, Business Head - New Mediaat Zee Entertainment Enterprises:  “OTT service providers such as Ditto TV are redefining the way consumers are viewing TV today. With people being always on the go, getting the right content to the publics becomes even more important today. The findings of this data sifted from consumers’ mobile TV data usage have implication for stakeholders that go beyond only the content providers. Handset manufacturers will need to take note of why and how their products are being assessed by their customers.”www.zeetelevision.com