New research from The Trade Desk shows young Indian consumers are increasingly gravitating towards the open internet. Nearly eight in 10 users surveyed have increased their time on the open internet, with 76 per cent expecting this trend to continue. The open internet — which includes over-the-top (OTT) and connected TV (CTV), music streaming, online gaming, and news/websites — now reaches an astounding 640 million users across India.
These insights are part of the new research study, “India’s Engaged Audience: Why the Open Internet is the New Premium,” highlighting opportunities to connect with the highly coveted consumer group aged 18 to 34.
 “The shift to the open internet represents a pivotal moment for marketers,” said Tejinder Gill, General Manager, India, The Trade Desk. “As more consumers engage with premium content on the open internet, marketers can now reach highly attentive audiences at scale. The notable levels of engagement, ad trust, and recall compared to traditional walled gardens mark a new era of ad receptiveness. This transition is poised to boost ad spend on the open internet
The Open Internet commands more consumer attention than walled gardens
Consumers clearly prefer the open internet for content consumption, as more young adults are engaged when consuming content on the open internet compared to walled gardens. Findings reveal that platforms on the open internet excel in engagement, with a greater proportion of young adults being most attentive to online games (35 per cent), OTT/CTV and news/websites (34 per cent), all of which outperform social media platforms (30 per cent).
This heightened engagement is driven by how users interact with content. On the open internet, users actively seek information, shop, or watch content. Conversely, on social media, users lean back, passively scrolling through auto-generated feeds.
For young Indians, brands advertising on OTT/CTV are viewed as more premium Â
The open internet has emerged as the primary destination for premium content. The research shows that 1 in 3 Indians surveyed prefer OTT/CTV as it offers more of their favourite premium content. This trend is even more pronounced among younger Indians, who indicated they are 27 per cent more likely to choose OTT/CTV over social media platforms for their preferred content. This shift highlights that younger users now view OTT/CTV as offering the best of the open internet.
As digital natives increasingly turn to OTT/CTV for premium content, they also perceive ads on these platforms as more premium. Young adults are 55 per cent more likely to view brands advertising on OTT/CTV as premium compared to user-generated content (UGC) video platforms.
Open Internet platforms drive more Ad receptiveness than social media
The research further indicates that ads on the open internet, such as OTT/CTV and music streaming are more trusted than those on social media. Over 4 in 10 find ads on the open internet to be trustworthy. In particular, OTT/CTV stands out as the most trustworthy channel, with young adults 16 per cent more likely to trust ads on OTT/CTV compared to social media platforms.
In terms of ad recall, the majority of the open internet platforms outperform walled gardens, with online gaming leading the charge, followed by news websites and music streaming platforms.
