MUMBAI: The number of TV owning individuals in the five south states of India, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Kerala, is 259 million, up 8 per cent from 2016. This insight came out from the Broadcast India (BI) survey released by Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC).

This also means that 31 per cent of total TV owning individuals are present in these five states. The TV owning individuals in the north is 209 million, west is 221 million and east is 146 million.

BARC India CEO Partho Dasgupta said, “The survey has thrown some interesting facts about South India’s TV viewing habits. While total TV penetration in India currently stands at 66 per cent, TV penetration in South India is as high as 95 per cent. This can also be attributed to the fact that electrification in South is around 99.9 per cent and one of the first durables which people buy having electricity is TV.”

BARC India’s BI 2018 Survey was conducted covering 300,000 households, approximately 4300 towns/villages and 68 per cent of the urban market.

With eight out 10 people sampling TV daily and a high time spent of 4 hours 10 minutes, the southern market has been witnessing a year on year growth in average time spent on TV. The region also generates viewership of around 12 billion impressions at a weekly level. The fact that 31 per cent of the TV individuals in South contribute to 40 per cent of total TV viewership, proves that people in the region love TV.

The factors that affect TV viewing range from family size, migration, electrification and affluence among others. BI 2018 survey highlights that growing affluence in South India has played an important role in the family structure and durable ownership.

As per BI 2018 Survey, at an all India level, the average family size for TV homes is 4.25 individuals. In South, this is much lower at 3.8 individuals per household. This shows that families in the South are much more nuclear in nature.

The socio-economic profiles of homes in South India have also improved as compared to 2016. While the affluent (NCCS A) have seen a growth of nine per cent, the upper middle class (NCCS B) TV homes have grown by 15 per cent. TV homes falling under low socio-economic profiles (NCCS D/E) have dropped by seven per cent. Nuclear families, increasing middle class and rising disposable incomes are helping households move across the affluence chain.

The survey also highlights the fact that close to 30 per cent homes in the south have their female members working either full time or part time. The ratio further improves in rural where 35 per cent of homes have its women working.

Entertainment in South is of prime importance across the value chain. While 85 per cent of NCCS D/E homes have a TV, only 66 per cent of these homes have a gas stove. This proves the need for these families to sit together and watch their entertainment.