In an age where consumer attention is increasingly fragmented, Connected TV (CTV) has emerged as a hybrid media powerhouse—blending the expansive reach of linear television with the precision and accountability of digital advertising.
The panel discussion at MMA Global’s recent session, CTV Unplugged: The Next Big Leap in Digital Video & Measurable Reach, brought together industry leaders from diverse sectors to decode the promise and practicalities of this rapidly evolving medium. Moderated by Riddhi Pimputkar, Sales Director at Teads India, the conversation delved into the evolution, measurement challenges, and creative opportunities CTV presents for Indian marketers.
The session spotlighted perspectives from seasoned marketing professionals, including Abhishek Bhasin, Vice President, Brand and Mobile Marketing, MakeMyTrip; Prabhvir Sahmey, Senior Director, Samsung Ads, India & South East Asia; Shamik Banerjee, CMO, Apollo 24|7; Sai Narayan, Chief Marketing Officer, Policybazaar Group and Vandana Krishnia, Director, Marketing And Product Management, South Asia, AkzoNobel. Each panelist brought a unique lens to how CTV fits into their respective brand strategies, and what needs to change for the platform to reach its full potential in India.
Sahmey described the current CTV landscape as still being in the early adoption phase for digital marketers. “CTV evidences the digital capabilities of what TV can do, but the critical mass is still lacking,” he explained.
Sahmey highlighted the inherent friction digital marketers face with non-clickable formats, saying, “The moment you throw them a medium without a click, it leaves them a bit teased—like ‘What happens after someone sees my ad?’” He emphasised the need for greater education and agency adaptation, noting, “The new kid on the block doesn’t know how to plan for TV.”
Bhasin echoed the sentiment that CTV is predominantly seen as a branding channel. “Search-driven platforms offer clearer performance metrics, which makes CTV’s role more top-of-funnel,” he said.
However, he added that MakeMyTrip is evolving its strategy to accommodate shifting audience behavior. “Our biggest pivot was during the post-2019 era when we saw a migration of premium audiences to CTV. That’s when we started replacing linear TV slots with CTV placements, especially during cricket broadcasts,” Bhasin shared.
Banerjee emphasised the importance of unifying storytelling and measurable outcomes. He shared a pragmatic view on how Apollo approaches measurement across platforms: “Our single measurement metric is free traffic—from direct sources like mobile apps or browsers—which helps us track campaign success whether it’s on TV, CTV, or mobile.”
Banerjee stressed that marketers must continuously optimise their media mix based on audience shifts: “The job of a marketer is to follow the audience and move spends accordingly.”
Krishnia brought a creative-centric perspective to the discussion. “Even before CTV, our creative was tailored to a premium audience, so the transition was natural,” she said. Yet, she acknowledged the limits of interactivity: “We tried interactive formats like ‘book a consultation’ but saw little traction—CTV remains a lean-back experience, not lean-in.”
She also noted a significant inventory gap: “Apart from sports, premium audiences on platforms like Netflix and Amazon are still behind paywalls, which limits ad reach.”
Narayan offered a candid take on the sensitive intersection between health data and CTV targeting. “India is still a one-screen household. In healthcare, hyper-targeted ads can backfire—imagine someone seeing a cancer treatment and they weren’t meant to,” he warned.
For him, CTV is still best used for brand-building. “It’s a strong upper-funnel tool, but for bottom-funnel conversions, we still have a long way to go in terms of data integration and actionable insights.”
As the session concluded, the panelists shared what they believed would unlock the next wave of investment in CTV. For Sahmey, it’s better measurement. Bhasin wants unified cross-device connectivity. Krishnia called for broader, more accessible inventory across platforms. Narayan summed it up succinctly: “It’s a great option for upper-funnel marketing, but we need a lot more innovation and integration before it becomes central to our media plans.”
