CTV ad formats: the complete guide for India advertisers and planners

Connected TV advertising runs across a wider range of formats than most planners realise. The obvious one — a 30-second pre-roll before a streaming show — is just the starting point. CTV supports mid-roll interruptions during content, post-roll completions, pause ads that appear when a viewer hits pause, home screen takeovers before any content is opened, L-banners that frame the screen during playback, interactive overlays with QR codes or second-screen triggers, and shoppable units that let viewers act on an ad without leaving the TV.

Each format has different completion rates, different buying routes, different creative requirements, and different availability across India's platforms. A pre-roll on JioHotstar during IPL and a pause ad on JioHotstar Premium are not the same product — the viewer state, the price, and the measurement approach are all different.

This tower covers every major CTV ad format category: video formats (the core of CTV advertising), display and overlay formats (non-video inventory that frames or interrupts content), and interactive and shoppable formats (the emerging category that turns CTV from a one-way broadcast into a response channel). Each section goes into India-specific availability, creative specs, CPM ranges where data exists, and practical planning guidance.