Smart TVs are becoming India's hottest content hub. But where are the sponsors?

As Indian households adopt smart TVs at a rapid rate, creators are racing to produce high-quality shows that cater to the growing demand for long-form content on the new ‘big screen’.

However, a significant hurdle remains. Producing high-quality content involves large upfront costs, and brands demand proof of success before investing. As most creators continue to bootstrap their shows and struggle to break even with YouTube revenue, India's thriving creator ecosystem risks being stifled by a lack of funding.

According to data from YouTube, consumption of content from India’s top creators on smart TVs has quadrupled in the past three years. And data published by ComScore, a global media measurement and analytics company, showed YouTube was the most-watched streaming service on TVs in India between March 2023 and March 2024.

Show me the money

In the past year, several creators have released high-quality shows such as the The Thugesh Show by Youtuber Mahesh Keshwala aka Thugesh, and Split or Steel by creator Abhishek Malhan aka Fukra Insaan, and What the Buck by finance creator Anshuman Sharma.

"Many creators who understand the content game are moving towards these types of shows as they see the gradual shift towards consumption on smartTVs. They are in a way going back to the good old days of long-form content on YouTube," said Shubham Singhal, founder of talent management firm Dot Media. "There’s a change coming, and creators have to adapt to it. If they don't, they’ll miss the train."

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But riding this wave is easier said than done, as creators may have great ideas but no guarantee of returns. Food vlogging trio Foodie We, who have 2.31 million YouTube subscribers, had planned for two years to create an entertaining cook-off show called Masterchef vs Disaster Chef. However, they decided to wait until they were financially secure before investing more than ₹10 lakh to produce it, they told Mint.

They rolled out the first episode three months ago and got about a million views on it. The entire show then gradually went online, with each of the seven episodes featuring two popular creators from different content categories competing with two of the Foodie We creators.

However, as they were unable to get a brand on board, they sponsored the show through their family business, an Ayurvedic brand called Omdhatu. They were able to recover only about half of their investment through YouTube revenue, they said.

'No sponsor, no point'

Aditya Gautam from Foodie We said, "If you have to create an IP on YouTube and don’t have a sponsor, there is no point, you shouldn't do it. We made our IP because we wanted to do something different, and we had been planning it for a while so we could afford it. But we knew we would take a loss, as we have been in this business since 2019 and know how YouTube revenue works. Brands don't come easy."

Standup comedian Ashish Solanki, who has 1.14 million YouTube subscribers, dedicated all his savings in creating the Pretty Good Roast Show. The show, which attracted some controversy, garnered more than 12.5 million views on average for each of its six free episodes. Solanki did not disclose how much he invested in it, but told Mint, "Not having financial backing from a brand is a major challenge, leading to curbs on things like exploring bigger venues, setups, guests, hospitality, etc. We have to stick to very simple and efficient methods as our own money is at stake."

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Solanki said the biggest cost in producing the show was the set, and getting it ready for different runs and shoots. He added that he also had to find a crew that wasn’t looking to work for big money but rather the nature of the project. "A lot of crewmembers worked for no money or 50% less than they usually get," he said.

Of six episodes released so far, Solanki said, three were not eligible for YouTube monetisation, which meant he was unable to recover his investment. He is now working on the second season of the show after learning from past mistakes. This time, he has a sponsor.

To the victor go the spoils

That said, content that has performed exceedingly well on the platform has gained significant attention – and funding – from brands looking for marketing opportunities. Samay Raina, a standup comic and content creator with 4.92 million YouTube subscribers, posted the first episode of his show, India's Got Latent, in June. It instantly topped the trending videos chart and got more than 17 million views.

Introduced as a "pointless show with an interesting points system", India's Got Latent is a talent show in which contestants perform in front of a different celebrity panel in each episode, aiming to bag an average score that matches the one they gave themselves before the performance. The 10 free episodes published so far have garnered 18.92 million views on average, which is almost four times Raina’s subscriber count.

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He has also posted a few episodes behind YouTube's paywall, which viewers can access – along with behind-the-scenes content – by subscribing to his channel for ₹59 a month. Raina didn't respond to Mint's queries on his returns from this.

Just after the second episode dropped, pre-owned car platform Spinny approached Raina to propose a sponsorship and eventually struck a deal, Arshdeep Chhabra, the brand's marketing manager, told Mint. The show also bagged sponsorships from other brands such as Pop UPI, a fintech firm, and WokTok, Veeba's Chinese sauces and instant noodles brand.

"The starting point for investing into IPs cannot be us liking it. It has to be an answer to a business requirement," Chhabra said. Chhabra said that the collaboration with Raina was a good investment for the brand, but refused to divulge details of the deal or the returns from it. "Many of our new customers told us they discovered us through the show," he said. He added that the company is also reviewing several requests for sponsorships from other creators.

Chhabra said he expects not only new-age brands but also traditional ones to start investing in interesting, long-format content "because that is where the people are".

India’s smart TV takeover

Data from market research firm IDC showed that 40-45 million Indian households currently own a smart TV. And according to research firm Counterpoint, smart TV sales are expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 7% from 2024 to 2030.

The smart TV market grew 5% year-on-year in Q3 2024 (July-Sept), fueled by rising demand for premium TV models and discounts around Independence Day and the festive season, according to data from Counterpoint Research. TVs priced below ₹30,000 continued to dominate the market, accounting for about 58% of total shipments. However, their share is declining as consumers increasingly choose premium models. In terms of brands, LG, Samsung, Sony, Xiaomi, and TCL collectively account for more than half of all smart TV shipments.

Before the pandemic, smart TVs accounted for about half of all TV sales, Counterpoint said. Their share has increased rapidly ever since, and smart TVs are expected to account for 94% of the total TV shipments this year.

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Deeper penetration of broadband services is accelerating the adoption of smart TVs, experts said. “Faster penetration of broadband has had a definite impact on smart TV adoption in India. On-demand video content consumption has become more common due to the widespread availability of affordable data, which has also increased the feasibility of having smart TVs in Indian homes," an IDC analyst said in a reply to Mint’s queries.

“YouTube on connected TVs is transforming how Indians enjoy online video. As the number one streaming service on connected TVs in India, with viewership quadrupling in the past three years, YouTube offers creators a lean-back, high-definition environment to showcase products in a cinematic way," Travis Katz, vice president and general manager for YouTube Shopping, said in an emailed statement.