What is AVOD? How ad-supported video on demand works in CTV

How AVOD works: the basic revenue flow

The economics are straightforward. A viewer opens a platform — JioHotstar, MX Player, Zee5 free tier — and watches content without paying a subscription fee. Before and during the content, the platform inserts ads. Advertisers pay the platform a CPM (cost per thousand impressions) for those ad slots. The platform uses that revenue to license or produce content and operate the service.

On CTV specifically, the ad experience is different from mobile AVOD:

• Non-skippable formats dominate. Most CTV AVOD inventory runs 15-second and 30-second non-skippable pre-roll and mid-roll. The viewer cannot skip. This is a fundamental difference from YouTube mobile where a 5-second skip option exists on most ads.
• Ad pods, not single ads. CTV platforms run ad breaks — typically two to four ads back-to-back — called ad pods. A mid-roll break on a 45-minute show might contain two 30-second spots, totalling one minute of ad time before content resumes.
• Controlled ad load. Premium AVOD platforms cap ads at roughly four to six minutes per hour of content. Linear TV runs twelve to sixteen minutes per hour. The lower ad load on CTV AVOD supports higher CPMs because each impression is less diluted and viewer attention is higher.
• Logged-in audiences. Because the content is free, platforms have leverage to require registration. A logged-in viewer has a persistent identity — email, phone number, or device ID — that enables targeting beyond cookies.

AVOD vs SVOD: the key differences

SVOD (subscription video on demand) is the opposite model: viewers pay a recurring fee, the platform earns from subscriptions, and there are no ads on the core tier. Netflix's original model, Amazon Prime Video standard, and Apple TV+ are SVOD. Advertisers cannot buy inventory against SVOD content unless the platform has added a separate ad-supported tier.

The practical difference for a media planner:

• AVOD = ad inventory available, larger total audience, lower average household income profile compared to paid-tier subscribers
• SVOD = no ad inventory (unless a hybrid tier exists), smaller audience, higher household income and willingness-to-pay signal
• Hybrid = both tiers in one app. Your ad runs only against the AVOD-tier viewers. Know what share of the platform's total audience is on the free tier before planning reach.

AVOD vs FAST

FAST (free ad-supported streaming TV) is also ad-funded but operates differently. AVOD is on-demand — the viewer chooses what to watch and when. FAST is scheduled linear streaming — the channel plays a fixed schedule continuously, like a broadcast channel over the internet. Both carry advertising, but the ad buying mechanics, viewer behaviour, and CPM levels differ. In India, AVOD is mature and scaled; FAST is nascent as of 2026.

AVOD in India: platforms and inventory pools

India is one of the world's most important AVOD markets precisely because willingness to pay for subscriptions is lower than in Western markets, but smartphone and smart TV penetration is high. That combination produces a large free-tier audience — and large AVOD inventory pools for advertisers.

The major AVOD environments in India CTV today:

JioHotstar

The merged entity (JioCinema + Disney+ Hotstar, rebranded 2025) operates a significant free AVOD tier alongside paid subscription options. The free tier includes premium live sport — including cricket — making it the largest single AVOD CTV inventory pool in India. IPL on the free tier has historically delivered scale that no other Indian digital property can match.

SonyLIV

SonyLIV operates a hybrid model: SVOD for premium originals and live sport, AVOD for older catalogue, news, and selected content. On CTV, SonyLIV's AVOD tier is a meaningful inventory source particularly for viewers outside the top six cities.

Zee5

Zee5's free tier is AVOD — it includes a large catalogue of archive content, regional language programming, and news. The premium originals sit behind a paywall. For advertisers targeting Hindi and regional-language audiences on CTV, Zee5 AVOD is a consistent allocation.

MX Player

Fully AVOD. No paid tier. MX Player's CTV inventory is smaller than the top-three platforms but the audience skews younger and is highly engaged with original content and music. Available programmatically.

YouTube on CTV

YouTube operates as AVOD on CTV. A smart TV connected to YouTube is delivering AVOD inventory. This is frequently overlooked in India CTV planning because YouTube is treated as a digital video buy. In reality, YouTube on a 43-inch TV screen in a living room is CTV inventory. YouTube Premium (SVOD) removes ads, but the free tier — which is the majority of Indian YouTube viewers — is AVOD.

Why AVOD is growing fastest in India

Several structural factors drive AVOD growth in India specifically:

• Price sensitivity. India has among the lowest subscription ARPU (average revenue per user) globally. Even at ₹149–₹299 per month for entry-level SVOD, a significant share of the population opts for the free tier. This keeps the AVOD audience large.
• Telco bundling of paid tiers. When Jio or Airtel bundles a streaming subscription with a SIM plan, consumers get SVOD "free" without choosing it. This has driven SVOD numbers up — but the actively engaged AVOD audience remains large among cord-nevers and data-light users.
• Smart TV growth. India is in the middle of a TV replacement cycle. New TV purchases are increasingly smart TVs. As these households install apps, many default to the free tier before upgrading. The CTV AVOD audience is expanding with every new smart TV sold.
• Content breadth. Free tiers in India carry a genuinely large content library — not stripped-down catalogues as in some Western markets. Viewers do not feel deprived on the free tier, reducing churn pressure toward SVOD.

AVOD monetisation mechanics for publishers

For a publisher or content owner operating on an AVOD model, revenue depends on three variables:

1. CPM. The price per thousand impressions. Premium content (live sport, new-release film premieres, originals) commands higher CPMs than archive catalogue. India CTV CPMs on premium AVOD inventory are estimated in the ₹200–₹600 range depending on content type, audience, and deal structure — though exact figures vary by platform, deal, and period. Use these as a directional range, not a quoted rate.
2. Fill rate. The percentage of available ad slots that are actually filled with paying ads. A 100% fill rate is theoretical — in practice, unsold inventory at the end of a day reduces effective yield. Higher fill rates require either strong direct sales or well-optimised programmatic demand.
3. Ad load. Total ad minutes per hour. More ad minutes means more impressions, but at the cost of viewer experience. Exceeding viewer tolerance drives churn from AVOD to SVOD or away from the platform. The optimum is platform-specific.

Effective RPM (revenue per thousand viewer hours) is the more useful publisher metric than CPM alone — it captures CPM, fill rate, and ad load together.

What AVOD means for advertisers planning India CTV

The practical implications for a planner building an India CTV schedule:

• Confirm which tier you are buying. On hybrid platforms, clarify that your budget reaches AVOD-tier users, not SVOD subscribers who will not see your ad.
• AVOD inventory is available both directly (direct IO with platform sales teams) and programmatically (via DSPs with PMP or open auction access). The mix differs by platform — some Indian publishers still favour direct; others have opened significant programmatic inventory.
• Non-skippable 30-second formats are the standard. Plan creative accordingly. A 6-second bumper that performs on mobile may not achieve the same engagement when held against a living-room audience for 30 non-skippable seconds.
• Registration data on AVOD platforms is valuable. Push for data-driven deals — using the platform's first-party audience segments — rather than run-of-network buys.