BARC India measures linear TV, not CTV or OTT streaming. India CTV planning therefore relies on three parallel inputs rather than a single currency: publisher-declared audience figures, DSP reach forecasting, and third-party ad verification.
The three inputs India CTV planners use:
- Publisher audience data: JioHotstar, SonyLIV, and Zee5 publish MAU figures and demographic profiles in their media kits. These are self-reported and not independently audited to BARC standards, but they are the best available audience sizing input. Ask specifically for connected TV MAU (smart TV + streaming device), not total platform MAU, which is dominated by mobile.
- DSP reach forecasting: DV360's reach planner and The Trade Desk's planning tool provide modelled unique household reach estimates for a given targeting set and budget, based on the DSP's own logged-in user graph. These are the most data-driven estimates available and are internally consistent within each DSP's universe — but they are DSP-specific, not an independent third-party measure.
- Third-party verification: IAS or DoubleVerify provide independent delivery confirmation — viewability rate, invalid traffic percentage, brand safety scoring. This is India CTV's closest equivalent to independent delivery auditing.
Post-campaign evaluation: Brand lift studies (Google Brand Lift for DV360 buys, TTD brand impact for TTD buys) give survey-based awareness and consideration lift data for campaigns above ~₹50L spend. For performance campaigns, last-touch or view-through attribution via AppsFlyer or Adjust tracks downstream outcomes. First-party pixel data — site traffic uplift after a CTV campaign — is the simplest and most reliable attribution signal for many advertisers.
The key discipline: Set client expectations before the campaign launches. India CTV reach and frequency cannot be measured with the precision of linear TV against BARC. This is a structural property of the market, not a gap in the planning process.
Related questions
- Why is India CTV measurement unreliable?
- Does BARC India measure streaming and CTV viewing?
- How is CTV measured in India?
For a full breakdown, see the India CTV planning without BARC knowledge base article.