COMPARATIVE STUDY ON BEHAVIORAL TRENDS OF CONSUMER FOR OTT

AND TRADITIONAL TELEVISION

RESEARCH PROJECT SUBMITTED FOR THE

FULFILLMENT OF DEGREE OF
MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION (MBA)

FOR THE BATCH 2019-21

UNDER HONOURS SCHOOL SYSTEM

AT

UNIVERSITY BUSINESS SCHOOL

PANJAB UNIVERSITY

CHANDIGARH

SUBMITTED TO SUBMITTED BY
Prof. Deepak Kapur Shikha (MBA-B)

UNIVERSITY BUSINESS SCHOOL, UNIVERSITY BUSINESS SCHOOL,

PANJAB UNIVERSITY, CHANDIGARH PANJAB UNIVERSITY, CHANDIGARH

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 Declaration
University Business School
Panjab University Chandigarh

I, Shikha of MBA -B Sem 4 th a full time bonafide student of Master of Business Administration Programme, Batch
(2019-21 ) of University Business School, Panjab University Chandigarh, hereby certify that this research project
carried out by me titled Comparative study on behavioral trends of consumer for OTT and traditional television in
partial fulfilment of the requirements of the programme is an original work of mine and is not based or reproduced from
any existing work of any other person or on any earlier work undertaken at any other time or for any other purpose, and
has not been submitted anywhere else at anytime .

Date: 24-03-2021

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Similarity Report

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 Contents
Abstract 7

Introduction 9

Literature Review 11

Objectives and Hypothesis Formulation 14

Research Methodology 15

Types of research and variables 15

Questionnaire Development 15

Standardized details of scale to be used 16

Variables selected for the study 17

Sampling Plan 17

Sampling size 17

Framework of the Study 18

Techniques used for the study 18

Data Analysis and Findings 20

Demographics 20

Data analysis using tableau 24

Data Analysis using SPSS 39

Conclusion 43

Future Scope of study 44

References 45

Annexures 47

Annexure I 47

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List of tables
Table 1demographic data 22
Table 2Income per annum Vs Willingness to pay (OTT) 25
Table 3Income per annum Vs willing to pay per month (TV) 26
Table 4Age vs Subscription Type (Income wise) 31
Table 5Age Vs Watch time 32
Table 6Age Vs Watch time (OTT) in percentage 32
Table 7Employment status vs Watch time(TV) 35
Table 8Employment status vs Watch time(TV) 36
Table 9Employment status vs Watch time(TV) 37
Table 10Employment status vs Watch time(TV) 37
Table 11Income vs Employment vs Education vs OTT-TV preference 38
Table 12Reliability Statistics 39
Table 13Model Summary-Nagelkerke R Square 40
Table 14BLR- Classification 41
Table 15BLR- Variables in the equation 42

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List of Figures

Figure 1Linear Regression Vs Logistic Regression 19

Figure2 Demographics – Gender 20
Figure 3 Demographics - Age 20
Figure 4 Demographics- Education 20
Figure 5 Demographics- Employment status 21
Figure 6 Demographics - Marital status 21
Figure 7 Demographics - Income 21
Figure 8Age Vs Watch preference 24
Figure 9Income per annum Vs willingness to pay (OTT) 25
Figure 10Income per annum Vs willing to pay per month (TV) 26
Figure 11Age Vs Preferred OTT 27
Figure 12Age Vs preferred OTT(Gender wise) 27
Figure 13Age Vs preferred OTT (choice 2) 28
Figure 14Age Vs preferred OTT(choice 3) 28
Figure 15OTT platform preference 29
Figure 16Age Vs Watch time (OTT) 29
Figure 17Age Vs Watch time (TV) 30
Figure 18Preferred content (TV) 33
Figure 19Preferred content (OTT) 34
Figure 20Employment Status and OTT 34
Figure 21Employment status vs Watch time(TV) 35
Figure 22Employment status vs Watch time(TV) 36

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 Abstract

OTT video platforms are turning into a significant part of viewers’ entertainment time and they are giving
tough competition to traditional modes liks television. There are certain advantages of OTT platforms like
Time and place convenience, availability of efficient and cheap data connectivity, penetration of smartphones,
availability of cheap and free access to these platforms, sheer breadth of content to choose from and quality of
content.
These factors are affecting viewers to shift towards the OTT Video Platforms. This study analyze the impact
of OTT platforms on traditional video services and study different factors that are important in determining
consumer choice between traditional modes and OTT platforms and focuses on determining whether OTT
platforms can take place of traditional modes.This study helps understanding how consumers’ choices can be
influenced by many recent trends that has been introduced in recent times only.
Moreover this survey also helps in figuring out the relationship between various trends like personalisation,
customisation, high speed mobile internet, introduction of smartphones etc and consumers preferences. In
addition to this, this study aims on figuring out how different individual attributes like age , gender, income,
occupation can influence the consumers’ choice as well as finding out if there exists a relationship between
the consumers behavioural trends and different factors (variables of study) which ultimately determines the
consumer viewing preference whether its OTT or traditional medium.
Five primary factors (variables) that determine consumer choice and people preferences of streaming content
on OTT platforms are
➢ Ease of access
➢ Price
➢ Variety
➢ Customer Service
➢ Surrounding Factors

Individuals with different areas of occupation , age, income , gender etc are selected for this research work
and based on their responses and preferences about the given factors and trends , a final conclusion was
drawn. Although various similar selection patterns were observed during the study among people with any
common demographic or psychographic aspect.

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Nowadays there are different platforms provided to viewers for watching movies and documentaries on their
personal gadgets. Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar, Zee5 and ALT Balaji, Jio tv are some examples of these
kinds of platforms which consist of different genres of content like movies and other video content through
the internet. These platforms are a combination of content from both cinema and television. There are some
productions which are releasing their content on these platforms only.
Now viewers can watch any type of content like new movies, web series, documentaries, news and short films
according to their convenient timing at reasonable price on these new media platforms. These platforms
have turned the entire scenario for television and cinema.
Additionally this study also shows how consumer viewing behaviour and choices change according to the
genre of content, subscription charges and customer services provided by different OTT platforms like
Netflix, Amazon, Hotstar, YouTube etc. For example nowadays web series are the most viewed content on
these OTT platforms. Also platforms like Netflix, hotstar also recommend new content on the basis of prior
watched content.
This study also reveals that Hotstar, Netflix and Youtube are some major players in the OTT service market.
This study also shows how people belonging to the same age group usually have the same viewing behavior
as the younger generation is more inclined towards OTT rather than traditional TV and also how many other
demographics and psychographic dependent attributes show different viewing patterns.

However, its was observed that there is huge shift of audience from traditional mediums to OTT platforms,
popularity of OTT is undoubtedly increasing among all kind of viewers and these platforms are continuously
providing their audiences with variety of new content but traditional television channels will not be
completely replaced by OTT platforms as there are still a big chunk of audience that are loyal towards or
belongs to traditional television. Therefore this complete transition from traditional to OTT platform is not
possible at least in the near future and there is high probability that they will coexist.

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Introduction

Global media and entertainment industry has seen swift changes over the years. The digital
disruption has changed the way we experience content. Print, radio, television, cinema, games,
events and music: all of these giant industries are experiencing a digital transformation. And
since the content distribution and consumption for all of these industries is also moving to digital
platforms, the resultant convergence is unprecedented.
A decade ago, ‘Watching TV’ meant sitting in front of a screen, waiting for your favourite
program to begin at a set time. But with the rapid development of technology coupled with the
growth of over-the-top (OTT) options, viewers can now stream content from either a traditional
TV package or an online source. OTT platforms have created extensive opportunities for
consumers who now have greater control over what, when and how they watch content. The
number of self-reported OTT viewers is significant. As per an online study conducted by Nielsen
in 61 countries, it was found that nearly two-thirds of global respondents (65%) watch some
form of OTT programming, which includes long and short-form content. The key insights for
platform owners are the flexibility of mapping the audiences through trillions of interactions,
using advanced techniques of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) for smart
recommendations and marketing. The ecosystem is for the first time keen to look at universal
data against sample data. Media & Entertainment content is at the cusp of Art and Technology,
Quality and Quantity, Message and Data; these new possibilities have changed the way M&E
industry functions.
As per a World Economic Forum’s report the global middle class will grow to an estimated 4.9
billion by 2030, creating a demand for new media services focused on convenience, education,
premium content and video-on-demand; particularly in emerging economies. (MICA,2018)
The rapid urbanization is contributing to an increased demand for offerings designed with
people’s commutes and busy work lives in mind. While the ageing world population is
demanding entertainment aimed for older people, the millennials are preferring services that
offer convenience, memorable experience and flexible access to content.
Plain old cable TV viewing is outdated, with most shows seeing flat or no growth and many
declining. As opposed to this, Over-the-top (OTT) platforms like Netflix are rapidly gaining
popularity.
The various OTT platforms offer a wide range of shows and options, ranging from TV series and
documentaries, to movies and a wide array of live sports. More and more consumers are moving
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from the traditional television to various such platforms, which they can easily view on their
Smart Televisions, tablets, mobile phones, and many other devices.

The future of OTT platforms across the world looks bright with a steady competition from linear
TV. To adapt itself to the transformation TV has started innovating by adopting the new age
digital platforms to reach out to the audience. Over the last one decade, the traditional linear
television promise included OTT platforms as a part of their strategy for future survival.
According to AIB Research, the over-the-top (OTT) video market across the world will continue
to grow at a brisk pace and with a surge compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10 percent
through 2022, the OTT market will generate a massive $51.4 billion.
Subscribers enjoy the lower cost of OTT options, as well as the lack of long-term commitments.
Globally even while TV has started showing a little decline, in number of subscribers OTT has
shown a clear increase in subscription. The average revenue per user (ARPU) for pay TV is
expected to go down to four times that of OTT in 2020, from six times that of OTT in 2017. Thus,
with the increasing number of subscribers the OTT players are marching towards heading solid
numbers to the revenue in the times to come. The global content scenario is at a fast pace getting
redefined from sourced content to produced content.
The revenue for the global OTT monitoring and compliance market is expected to increase from
$62.0 million in 2018 to $149.7 million in 2024, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of
15.8 percent over the forecast period.(MICA,2019)

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Literature Review

Has there been a change in watching behaviour of viewers?, if yes, How has this change
impacted their platform selection criteria? What factors motivated the viewers causing such a
drastic change?
These are few questions of great importance to be answered to get a deeper insight into how
viewing behaviour has changed in recent times.
Nielsen report measured TV consumption patterns and the impact of time-shift covering the 3rd
quarter of 2012 in the U.S. and it points to an overall decrease in the number of TV viewers, as
compared to the same period of 2011, despite an increasing viewing time per spectator. As
regards to time-shift viewing, the same study shows a significant increase in the number of users
and in the time spent viewing per month ( The Nielsen Company, 2013).In another report by
Ericsson in 3 different continents it was concluded that despite live content continues to lead the
preferences of viewers, their number has been decreasing since 2010, as well as the Digital Video
Recorder (DVR) users, losing 16% between 2010 and 2012 (Ericsson ConsumerLab, 2012). This
is in line with the results of a study by Digitalsmiths covering the last period of 2012 that states
that more than half of respondents claim to spend less than 10% of their time watching TV from
the DVR (Digitalsmiths, 2012). In contrast there are the on-demand services with a slight
increase in the number of users in the same period (Ericsson ConsumerLab, 2012). It is also
important to highlight that almost 25% of the participants said they zapped more than 20 minutes
a day and 87% claimed to see the same channels most of the time. The other findings, from
Digitalsmiths reports that only 4% of viewers sit in front of the TV with prior knowledge of what
they want to see (Digitalsmiths, 2012).

By December 2017, the internet user base in India was 445.96 million (2nd highest in the world
only behind China). India’s overall internet penetration was 34% by December 2017. The urban
internet penetration was 76.4% against only 14% penetration in rural India. Out of the total
internet users in India, 81% (362.87 million) access the internet via broadband and 95% (424.76
million) access it wirelessly. 70% (313.92 million) of the total internet users are urban. The
lightning fast growth of first time internet users is the result of the influx of cheap mobile devices
coupled with attractive low-cost data plans both in rural and urban areas. The new generation of
internet in India is high speed, broadband and wireless.(MICA, 2018)

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In a study conducted for portuguese viewers concluded that despite the availability of various
web streaming services, TV proved to be an integral part of people’s daily routines (Jorge F. et.al.
, 2013). But in India,there is a slightly different scenario experienced. Data usage has risen
32-fold in the last five years. KPMG Eros Now claims that Indians devote on video platforms an
average of 70 minutes a day. Although good content is a key differentiator for OTT channels, the
pricing strategy is what made them stand out (KS, 2019).A TRAI report showed that in the
January-March period last year, Direct-to-Home (DTH) services had an estimated active
subscriber base of 72.44 Mn. It has fallen to 54.26 million, a 25% drop in the quarter ending June
30.Another study showed, in comparison, that four out of five smartphone users use at least one
OTT platform for entertainment. It means that 80% of smartphone users are using at least one
OTT network (Khatri, 2019).

There is the price aspect that has propelled India's OTT craze as a fiercely competitive sector.
The affordable plans and the data tariff battle that has devastated the industry, telecom operators
want to distinguish themselves and they allow service offerings to become the differentiating
factor. Consequently, several people used such resources easily. Consumers adopting DTH, on
the other side, must pay a high monthly fee. In such a case, the leniency of the people against
OTT applications is set to increase gradually (Sharma, 2019).

India’s rapid growth in data consumption was registered due to the introduction of Reliance Jio
4G network in September 2016. The Jio launch disrupted the telecom market with its affordable
data packages. The launch of Jio 4G network, eventually led to six times more video
consumption in the first half of 2017.This has created a number of new entertainment
powerhouses. Hotstar is now one of the most used video streaming apps in the world, driven
almost entirely by its vast Indian audience (MICA 2019). Some similar results were found in
another study (Paramveer S.,2019), which stated that cost effectiveness is one of the reasons
behind the good future of streaming media in India. Other findings in this study indicated that the
wide acceptability of OTT over traditional televisions and behind the shift of preference was due
to convenience of service, personal medium and easy availability of International content.
Overall perception of Indian audience towards change in Indian television and cinema industry is
positive, as the viewer thinks that this brings more competition in the market, thus an increase in
quality would be experienced.
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In a report by BCG in 2018, it was evident that globally, players are realizing the importance of
creating curated content, in line with viewer preferences. As a result traditional players as well as
digital natives are making significant investments to build their content pipeline. Players like
Netflix invest aggressively to match 3x the investment made by top players like Amazon Prime
and Hulu.The average money spent on content for OTT platforms is higher than the average
content cost for television in emerging markets like India.(MICA, 2019)
Seeing the “selling like hot cakes” scenario, more and more platforms like Ullu, Shemaroome,
and MXPlayer tried their luck to enter the herd, and it is evident that this is the best time for OTT
platforms as there is a sudden growth of platforms, with more investments, more content, more
consumers and more revenue. The broadcasters of daily soaps have also adapted themselves to
keep up pace with the rapid changing behaviour,they have a new weapon for linear television
called live content streamed on OTT platforms. (MICA, 2019).
It is evident from various studies that the future of OTT is bright and the reasons for this are
smartphone penetration, International collaborations between media moguls, Cost effectiveness
and digital quality of the medium. (Paramveer S.,2019)

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Objectives and Hypothesis Formulation

Objective of study Hypothesis

● To analyse the change in the viewing H0: There is no change in viewing behaviour
behaviour of people from traditional of people from traditional television to over
television to over the top platforms. the top platforms.
H1: There is a change in viewing behaviour of
people from traditional television to over the
top platforms.

● To perform a preferential analysis on H0: There is no difference in selection

the basis of viewers demographics. preference of people based on their
demographics.
H1: There exists a difference in selection
preference of people based on their
demographics.

● The study also includes the viewer’s H0:psychographic factors don’t impact
psychographic factors and the impact viewers in selecting the alternative.
of these factors on these alternatives. H1: psychographic factors do impact viewers
in selecting the alternative.

● To assess the factors that influence the H0: These factors do not influence the
selection criteria of the watching selection criteria of watching platforms.
platform of choice (Traditional H1: These factors do influence the selection
Television / OTT Video Platform) criteria of watching platforms.

● To determine the acceptability of OTT H0: OTT is still not widely accepted.
in times to come. H1: OTT is now accepted widely.

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Research Methodology

This study is aimed at understanding the changing viewers’ behaviour in terms of their choice
and preference of platform (traditional Television / OTT), content, subscription charges etc. So in
order to understand the behaviour of participants and before performing any analysis, a careful
and thorough review of Literature and expert view points were taken under consideration.

Types of research and variables

This study adopts an exploratory research in which data is collected in two parts :-
● Consumer Demographics variables
● Consumer Psychographics variables.

For analysis of variables based on consumer demographics , google analytics and Tableau is used
which is a powerful and fastest growing data visualization tool used in the Business Intelligence
Industry. It helps in simplifying raw data into the very easily understandable format.
Similarly , for analysis of psychographic variables, SPSS is used as a statistical tool , which is
short for Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, and it’s used by various kinds of researchers
for complex statistical data analysis.
Factor analysis technique is used for further analysis. It’s a way to find hidden patterns, show
how those patterns overlap and show what characteristics are seen in multiple patterns.
Under Factor Analysis, i am using EFE for my study (exploratory factor analysis)
Exploratory factor analysis is used if you don’t have any idea about what structure your data is or
how many dimensions are in a set of variables.

Questionnaire Development

This study is based on a survey method. Questionnaire was used for data collection.
Online Survey through google forms was conducted. Total 218 respondents have been selected as
samples for data collection. Data is analyzed through simple
percentage analysis.
The questionnaire is divided into 3 parts:
Part 1: Consumer Demographics

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Part 2: Factors influencing OTT viewership.
Part 3: Factors influencing traditional television viewership.

Part 1:- Consumer Profile:

The questionnaire in Part 1 consists of a user’s profile indicating gender, age, education,
occupation, monthly income, and marital status etc.

Part 2:- Factors influencing OTT viewership:

This part of questionnaire consists of preference among various OTT platforms , and different
factors that influence the selections of these platforms like type of content available ,
subscription charges, variety of content, accessibility, surrounding etc.

Part 3:- Factors influencing traditional television viewership:

Last part of the questionnaire consists of different factors influencing the television viewership
which are similar to OTT like price to pay, content type, accessibility, viewing time etc.

These Google Forms were distributed via Social Media Platforms.

Standardized details of scale to be used

To measure respondent’s attitude, perception or opinions, a five point likert scale is used.
Respondents were asked to rate different given factors on a level of agreement.
Different items or factors are rated using his scale from point 1 to 5 i.e from strongly disagree to
strongly agree where
1 refers to Strongly disagree
2 refers to Disagree
3 refers to Neutral
4 refers to Agree
5 refers to Strongly Agree

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To measure the demographic status of the respondents, questions with answers in the form of
option buttons, and also in the form checkboxes. The dichotomous scale(Yes/No) was also used
to get insight into various details.

Variables selected for the study

Various variables were used to depict and gain insight into the preferences of consumers between
television and OTT platforms. The variables used were as follows, and were the same for both
television and OTT, so as to provide consistency between various responses.
➢ Ease of access
➢ Price
➢ Variety
➢ Customer Service
➢ Surrounding Factors
Each variable offered the choice in the form of a Likert scale, from 1 (Strongly Disagree) to
5(Strongly Agree). The respondents were asked to fill these questions to show how much each of
these variables had an impact on their preference.

Sampling Plan

Convenience sampling along with snowball sampling was used for this study. The questionnaire
was initially sent to selected units of respondents via social media platforms and emails. Selected
respondents were then asked to share the questionnaire with their peer groups and social groups.

Sampling size

The questionnaire was distributed to around 500 respondents out of which 245 respondents filled
the questionnaire. In order to bring the desired level of conformity to the study 218 responses
were selected out of the total number of responses recorded.

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Framework of the Study

Initially, after designing the questionnaire, a pilot run was conducted, where the questionnaire
was sent to 12 people to test if the questions were relevant and accurate. Based on their positive
response and feedback, the questionnaire was then distributed among the various potential
respondents based on convenience and snowball sampling methods.
On receiving a significant amount of responses, the google form was closed. I received 245
responses, which was considerably more than the minimum number of responses required for a
study to be carried out (Number of variables[6] * 5 = 30).
Post that, Google Analytics,Microsoft Excel and Tableau were used for data cleanup and
visualizations. Tableau was preferred over other softwares because of its functionality to
compare more than two factors simultaneously, and due to the customizations it provides.
Various answers the respondents gave were compared and analyzed according to different
demographic factors.
In statistical techniques, Cronbach’s alpha was used to measure the consistency of the study, and
Binary Logistic Regression was utilized to predict a categorical variable based on the various
independent variables used.

Techniques used for the study

Different statistical techniques were used to understand the consumer perception towards
watching preference.
Cronbach's alpha which is the most common measure of internal consistency ("reliability") was
used. Cronbach’s alpha gives us a simple way to measure whether or not a score is reliable. It is
used under the assumption that you have multiple items measuring the same underlying
construct. Theoretically, Cronbach’s alpha results should be a number from 0 to 1, but we can get
negative numbers as well. A negative number indicates that something is wrong with our
data—perhaps we forgot to reverse the score of some items. The general rule of thumb is that a
Cronbach’s alpha of
.70 and above is good, .80 and above is better, and .90 and above is best.
To understand how consumers choose their viewing medium, the Binary Logit Regression model
(BLR). Logistic Regression is a classification algorithm that is used when we want to predict a

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categorical variable (Yes/No, Pass/Fail) based on a set of the independent variable(s). The only
assumption associated with this kind of analysis is that the dependent variable should be
dichotomous in nature (e.g., presence vs. absent).Instead of fitting a straight line or hyperplane,
the logistic regression model uses the logistic function to squeeze the output of a linear equation
between 0 and 1.

Figure 1 linear regression vs logistic regression

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Data Analysis and Findings

Demographics

Figure2 Demographics – Gender

Figure 3 Demographics - Age

Figure 4 Demographics- Education

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Figure 5 Demographics- Employment status

Figure 6 Demographics - Marital status

Figure 7 Demographics - Income

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Table 1demographic data
A total of 245 responses were received,
out of which 27 responses were rejected to
maintain the consistency and to bring the
desired level of conformity.

The respondents were divided nearly

equally when it came to gender, with
50.9% females, 46.8% males, and 5
people (2.3%) preferred not to declare
their gender.

Since India has a considerable amount of

young adults in the population, the
questionnaire responses reflect this as
well, with 76.6% of the total responses
coming from people between the ages of
20 and 34. People between the ages of 35
to 50 account for 10.1% of the responses.
People above the age of 50 (7.1%) and
below the age of 20 (5.5%) are also
included, and the age factor can be seen to
be normally distributed.

A majority of the respondents were seen to be

highly educated,
i.e. having or pursuing a bachelor or
postgraduate degree (89.4%).

Students made up 40.8% of the people

who responded, while 9.2% of the people
owned a business, and 35.3% worked in
either a public or private sector job.
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A majority of the respondents were
unmarried (76.6%), while 22.9% people
were betrothed. A single person chose
‘other’ as their answer.

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As can be seen from the table and the charts shown above, 42.2% of the respondents had income
below Rs. 2.5 lakhs, and this is understandable, since the percentage of students who answered
the questionnaire was around 40% as well.
The respondents who selected the segments of 2.5-5L and 5-10L, were 22% and 19.7%
respectively, with 16.1% having an income of greater than Rs. 10 lakhs per annum.

Data analysis using tableau

Figure 8Age Vs Watch preference

This chart compares the watching preference of OTT platforms, among various age segments. It
can be seen that out of all the age groups, people less than 35 years old are quite into this, as can
be seen from the 91.67% people below 20, and 87.7% people between the ages of 20 and 34 who
voted yes when asked if they watch OTT.
It takes a slight dip when it comes to the middle age group (35-50), where around 7 people out of
the 22 who voted said they do not use any OTT platforms. However, it cannot be said that older

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people are less likely to prefer this platform, as 81.25% people over the age of 50 said they do
use various OTT platforms for their entertainment.
Table 2Income per annum Vs Willingness to pay (OTT)

Figure 9Income per annum Vs willingness to pay (OTT)

The illustrations above depict the income of various people, and an idea about their willingness
and desires to pay for a monthly subscription. As can be seen from the table, a majority of people
prefer to pay between Rs 50-200 per month for a subscription (between 52%-65%), no matter
what income group they lie in. However, something that was expected was the willingness of
people
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from higher income groups (i.e. >Rs 10 Lakhs) to pay more for the subscription. But, that was
found to be untrue, as a very small portion of those people were willing to pay more than Rs 400
per month. Also, from people who were only willing to pay Rs 50 or less per month, respondents
from the income group greater than Rs 10 Lakh had the most percentage from their respective
segments. One of the illustrations above shows the data in the form of a heat map, where the
darkest regions have the most percentage, whereas the lighter a region gets, the lesser the
percentage it depicts.
Table 3Income per annum Vs willing to pay per month (TV)

Figure 10Income per annum Vs willing to pay per month (TV)

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The two illustrations above depict the income of various people, and an idea about their
willingness and desires to pay for a monthly subscription for a DTH service. In the income
segment of less than Rs 2.5 lakh, 5 people out of 12 are willing to pay Rs 50-200 per month, and
4 out of 12 people would be willing to pay more than Rs 600 per month. However, similar to
what was seen in the OTT payment illustrations, people with income greater than Rs 10 lakh are
not willing to pay more, and in this case none of the respondents would pay more than Rs 400 for
a TV service provider. Overall, as seen from the table and the heat map, a major share of the
respondents who voted yes for television, would be willing to pay between Rs 50-400 per month

for subscriptions.

Figure 11Age Vs Preferred OTT

Figure 12Age Vs preferred OTT(Gender wise)

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Figure 13Age Vs preferred OTT (choice 2)

Figure 14Age Vs preferred OTT(choice 3)

As we can see from the four horizontal bar graphs above, Netflix has a clear majority in the first
choice of most consumers, at least till we consider people under 50 years. However, Youtube
slightly edges over Netflix as the first preference when people over 50 years of age are
considered. Overall, in the first choice, Youtube is a strong competitor to Netflix, and we can
assume this to be because Youtube offers free content along with paid subscriptions, whereas
Netflix offers only paid subscriptions. Also, people use Youtube not only for entertainment
purposes, but also for educational content. Moreover, it is also seen that there is no gender bias
towards the preference

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of Netflix, as both males and females have consistently chosen Netflix as their first preference
among a plethora of OTT platforms.
Furthermore, when it comes to the second choice, Amazon Prime and Youtube are neck and
neck, with Amazon Prime gaining a slight advantage in nearly all the age categories.
However, when it comes to the third choice, it was seen that people chose a lot of different
options like Amazon Prime, Disney+ Hotstar, Voot, and others. A majority was seen in Amazon
Prime, closely followed by Netflix, Youtube and Amazon Prime.

Figure 15OTT platform preference

Overall, when asked to choose all the options they watched in OTT platforms, Youtube had the
majority with 172 takers (92.5% of all respondents who said they watched OTT), Netflix came in
a close second with 161 people choosing it (86.6%), Amazon Prime came in third with 144
responses (77.4%), with Disney+ Hotstar coming in after that with 98 takers at 52.7% of the total
respondents choosing this option.

Figure 16Age Vs Watch time (OTT)

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As inferred from the above bar graphs, different age groups show different viewing time patterns.
On an average, the most amount of time dedicated to these platforms is 1-2 hours for all age
groups. As observed from the data, for people of all age groups except 35 to 50 years, nearly half
of the people have viewing time of 1-2 hours. In addition to that, it was also noticed that less than
1 hour of watch time was observed in the age group of 20 to 50 years only (35.71% for 35-50
years & 14.69% for 20-34 years). It could be due to the reason that people of this age group have
busier lifestyles than others. Most numbers of watching hours i.e 4+ hours was recorded for the
age group of below 20 years i.e 36.36% of people of this category as all of them are students and
nowadays they are the target viewers of these platforms.

Figure 17Age Vs Watch time (TV)

As per the data recorded in the above graph, it was observed that how age of any individual can
impact the watch time for TV. However, most of the people regardless of any age group have less
than 1 hour of watch time for TV nowadays. This age v/s watching time patterns hints towards
the fact that people are shifting from TV to OTT platforms as on an average maximum view time
of TV is 2 hrs irrespective of the age groups.

30
Table 4Age vs Subscription Type (Income wise)
Table 4 shows the comparisons between
age, incomes, and whether a person has a
personal subscription to an OTT
platform, or uses somebody else’s
subscription to stream content.
For people over 35 years of age, it can be
seen that most, if not all use personal
subscriptions. There are 2 respondents
over 50 years, who use other’s
subscriptions, but this can be assumed to
be their childrens’ accounts.
In the respondents below 35 years of age,
it could be seen that there is a balance
between people who use their own
subscription, and those who use other’s
subscriptions for content viewing. 33.1%
people in these age segments use other
peoples’ accounts, while the remaining
66.9% respondents prefer to use their
own subscription to view content over
OTT platforms.

31
Table 5Age Vs Watch time

Table 6Age Vs Watch time (OTT) in percentage

The two heat map tables above depict the preferences of people from different age groups, and
whether they selected OTT, TV, or both. Overall, on looking at it initially, it can be seen that a
larger share of people choose OTT than the ones that chose television. This number is significant
in the age group 20-34, where 128 respondents (78.53%) chose OTT, 19 respondents (11.66%)
chose television, and the remaining 16 respondents (9.82%) chose both options.
In the other age groups, the following percentage chose OTT or both as an option, less than 20
years (75%), 20-34 years (88.35%), 35-50 years (80.95%), and greater than 50 years (62.5%).
This helps us realize the increasing reliance, and the shift of the media and entertainment
industry towards OTT platforms gradually.

32
Figure 18Preferred content (TV)

The tree map shown above illustrates the content preference of TV viewers, and the answers to
this question were available in the form of radio buttons. It can be seen that most people watch
news (25.81%, 8 respondents), after that come movies (22.58%, 7 respondents), then TV series
(19.35%, 6 respondents), with live sports and reality shows both getting 9.68% of the
respondents (3 respondents). Documentaries had the least takers, along with others, at 6.45%
respondents each (2 respondents).

33
Figure 19Preferred content (OTT)

When i came to the viewership preferences on OTT platforms (the answers of this question were
given in the form of multiple choice checkbox options), it was seen that contrary to TV
preferences, news had very little respondents at 41 out of the total people who chose they used
OTT platforms. Movies and TV series was the most common choice, with 154 people (82.8%)
choosing it as an option. After that, the preferences were as mentioned in this sequence:
Webseries, Documentaries, Live sports, News, and then Reality shows.

Figure 20Employment Status and OTT

34
From the above bar chart, it can be seen that from each employment sector, that the people who
have voted ‘Yes’ for OTT are greater than or equal to 80%, except in the segment of ‘Other’
employment. In the retired section, two people have filled the form, and they both use OTT
platforms for entertainment. In the case of students, a large share (92.1%, 82 respondents) have
voted yes, which shows how the paradigm shift is changing slowly and consistently towards the
acceptability of OTT platforms over the traditional television entertainment options. In business
men/women (80%, 16 respondents) and public and private sector employees (84.7%, 61
respondents) majorly voted that they use OTT platforms for entertainment and media purposes.

Figure 21Employment status vs Watch time(TV)

Table 7Employment status vs Watch time(TV)

35
Table 8Employment status vs Watch time(TV)

Overall, on looking at the heat map of the data available, we can see that mostly all the
respondents watch content on OTT platforms from 1 to 2 hours a day, irrespective of their
employment status. However, when certain employment sectors were considered as a criteria, we
see that only a minute number of people watch OTT for more than 3 hours when it comes to
public and private sector jobs (4.92%, 3 respondents).
Students are seen to watch content on these types of platforms majorly for around 1-3 hours
(71.95%, 59 respondents), with an equal number of respondents watching for less than one hour,
and for greater than 4 hours (9.76%, 8 respondents each).
Students form nearly 50% of the population that chose 1-2 hours of viewing as an option, and
close to 60% of the population that chose greater than 4 hours as the viewing
time. A majority of people who chose business as their mode of employment watch for either
1-2 hours a day (43.75%, 7 respondents), or for 3-4 hours a day (31.25%, 5 respondents), which
makes the total to be exactly 75%.

Figure 22Employment status vs Watch time(TV)

36
Table 9Employment status vs Watch time(TV)

Table 10Employment status vs Watch time(TV)

As per the data recorded it can be concluded that people having different employment status
have different viewing behaviour with respect to time. People irrespective of the sector they are
working for appears to be dedicating very less amount of time to TV these days. About 50% of
the total number of people who are working for private/public sectors watch TV for less than 1
hour only and it was also observed that out of the total viewers who are giving most amount of
time to TV
i.e 4+ hours, 75% were those who were working in other sectors like unorganised sectors,
labour class, unemployed etc.

37
Table 11Income vs Employment vs Education vs OTT-TV preference

The above illustration compares a range of different factors and demographics, like income,
employment status, education, and whether the respondents falling in each category uses OTT
platforms for content consumption. The data gives the count of people falling in each category,
and is pretty self explanatory.

38
Data Analysis using SPSS
Table 12Reliability Statistics

Cronbach’s alpha, α (or coefficient alpha), developed by Lee Cronbach in 1951, measures
reliability, or internal consistency. “Reliability” is how well a test measures what it should. For
example, does watch preference of consumers really depend on various variables like Pricing,
Accessibility,Service quality, variety and surroundings.High reliability means it measures watch
preference, while low reliability means it measures something else.
Since these are very difficult to measure in real life. Cronbach’s alpha will tell, if the test
designed is accurately measuring the variable of interest.
A rule of thumb states that, for Likert scale questions, the value of alpha anything over .7 is
considered good and gives an indication of the extent of reliability of the test.
For the responses collected for this study, Cronbach’s alpha came out to be .757 which positions
the test as a reliable one.

39
Table 13Model Summary-Nagelkerke R Square

Table 13 contains the Cox & Snell R Square and Nagelkerke R Square values, which are both
methods of calculating the explained variation. These values are sometimes referred to as pseudo
R2 values (and will have lower values than in multiple regression). However, they are interpreted
in the same manner, but with more caution. Therefore, the explained variation in the dependent
variable based on our model ranges from 23.4% to 43.1%, depending on the Cox & Snell R2 or
Nagelkerke R2 methods, respectively.

40
Table 14BLR- Classification

Binomial logistic regression estimates the probability of an event (in this case,OTT over TV in
watch preference) occurring. If the estimated probability of the event occurring is greater than or
equal to 0.5 (better than even chance), SPSS Statistics classifies the event as occurring (e.g.,OTT
is prefered). If the probability is less than 0.5, SPSS Statistics classifies the event as not
occurring (e.g.,TV is prefered).
Table 14 has a subscript which states, "The cut value is .500". This means that if the probability
of a case being classified into the "yes" category is greater than .500, then that particular case is
classified into the "yes" category. Otherwise, the case is classified as in the "no" category (as
mentioned previously). Whilst the classification table appears to be very simple, it actually
provides a lot of important information about your binomial logistic regression result, including:
The percentage accuracy in classification (PAC), which reflects the percentage of cases that can
be correctly classified as OTT prefered with the independent variables added. The overall
percentage accuracy of 88.1% depicts the accuracy and the authenticity of the responses
collected.

41
Table 15BLR- Variables in the equation

The Wald test ("Wald" column) is used to determine statistical significance for each of the
independent variables. The statistical significance of the test is found in the "Sig." column. From
these results you can see that Accessibility (p = .000), Variety (p = .052) and Cust_Service (p =
.039) and Surroundings (p = .072) added significantly to the model/prediction, but Pricing (p =
.783) did not add significantly to the model.
The table shows that the odds of choosing OTT("yes" category) is 4.621 times greater over TV
when it comes to accessibility. Similarly odds of choosing OTT over TV when it comes to
variety was 1.181. But people tend to choose TV(“no” category) based on the factors like
customer service and surroundings. This signifies that TV is preferred over OTT whenever
watch preference comparison is done on the basis of the variables like Surroundings and
Customer Service. This could very well be justified because of the fact that people , in general
like to watch TV while sitting with family. High quality customer service is not expected, and in
most cases does not significantly impact the preference in a virtual service like OTT platforms,
but in the case of television service providers, which comes under the category of both physical
and virtual service, customer service is quite an important factor. However it can be
comprehended that pricing doesn't impact the “Yes” or “No” preference regarding OTT over TV
selection.

42
Conclusion

To encapsulate, even though a huge shift in the preference of consumers can be seen moving
from traditional television to various over-the-top (OTT) platforms, a significant loyalty or
belonging towards the traditional entertainment and media platforms and options can be clearly
seen. The various companies that provide video-on-demand, and over-the-top services need to
work more to increase their market share.

It can be clearly seen not only the younger generation prefers the newer virtual streaming
options, but also the older people, over the age of 50 years, who seem to be quick to adapt, and
also eager to learn and experience the new ways in which the media and entertainment sector is
changing in the modern world.

Also, from the data analysis section, it was observed that the major option available in the DTH
service sector, that is either not provided by, or not availed by the viewers in the OTT platforms
is the news segment, which a lot of people use televisions to watch.

Another thing that was seen was that higher priced subscription plans and options for people
falling in higher income categories would not really help in extending the reach of the companies
providing such services, as it was seen from the study that most people from the high income
groups would not be willing to pay more.

Surprisingly, the quality of customer service does not really influence the preference in OTT
platforms, accessibility, however is a major criteria for people selecting the choice of
over-the-top platforms for content viewership.

43
Future Scope of Study
This study helps to analyze the effect of OTT platforms and the components that could be significant in deciding
customer choice between DTH services and OTT platforms.
Also, it helps in determining the essential components influencing customer choice and what is preferred by the
individuals when it comes to switching from OTT stages to DTH associations and the factors responsible for the fact
that why there's a significant contrast within the substance observed on traditional television channels and OTT stages

This comparative study can also check what sorts of significant strategies various platforms are using currently and on
what basis future strategies can be designed in order to improve their popularity and viewership respectively.

44
References

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(new) television environment. Proceedings of the 11th European Conference on
Interactive TV and Video - EuroITV '13. doi:10.1145/2465958.2465970
● Chen, Y. (1970, January 01). Competitions among OTT TV Platforms and Traditional
Television in Taiwan: A Niche Analysis. Retrieved November 04, 2020, from
http://hdl.handle.net/10419/168477
● D. (2012). Video Discovery Trends Report: Consumer Behavior Across Pay-TV, VOD,
OTT and Next-Gen Features. Retrieved November 04, 2020, from
http://www.digitalsmiths.com/downloads/Digitalsmiths_Q4_
2012_Video_Discovery_Trends_Report
● Ericsson ConsumerLab. (2012). TV and Video: An analysis of evolving consumer habits.
Retrieved November 05, 2020,
from http://www.ericsson.com/res/docs/2012/consumerlab/tv_vide o_consumerlab_report
● Khatri, B. (2020, November 05). Is-ott-eating-into-dth-cable-time-here-then umber speak.
Retrieved November 04, 2020, from https://inc42.com/buzz/is-ott-eating-into-dth-cable-
time-heres-thenumberspeak/
● KS, B. (2019, September 26). Can OTT platforms displace cable TV and DTH?
Retrieved November 04, 2020, from
https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/info-tech/can-ott-
platformsdisplace-cable-tv-and-dth/article29516596.ece
● Madhani, R., Nakhate, V. (2020). Comparative Study Of Viewers’ Behaviour Over
Traditional Television Channels And Over Ott Video Platforms In Maharashtra.
International Journal of Advanced Science and Technology, 29(12s), 1046-1057.
● MICA -INDIAN OTT PLATFORMS-2018 REPORT. (n.d.). Retrieved November 04,
2020, from http://www.mica.ac.in/indian-ott-platforms/indian-ott-platforms
● MICA -INDIAN OTT PLATFORMS-2019 REPORT. (n.d.). Retrieved November 04,
2020, from https://www.mica.ac.in/indian-ott-platforms/indian-ott-platforms/2019
● The Nielsen Company. (2013). State of the Media: The Cross-Platform Report Q3 2012 -
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● Paul, V., D. (2020). A Study on Over the Top Platforms on DTH and its Impact on
Consumer Behaviour. International Journal of Research in Engineering, Science and
Management, 3(3). doi:10.47607/ijresm
● Sharma, A. (n.d.). Trai Mandate Effect: OTT Apps Might Prove Damaging to DTH
Viewership and Revenue. Retrieved November 04, 2020, from
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4(8). doi:10.31620/jccc.12.18

46
Annexures

Annexure I

Google forms as attached below- Questionnaire used

47
 A consumer survey on watching preferences.
This Survey will help us in analyzing the customer watching preference.
Here, by OTT or Over The Top media services, i refer to the various video streaming platforms that
are available these days, like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar, among others.
* All of your responses will be recorded anonymously

Thanks in advance

*Required

1. Gender *

Mark only one oval.

Male

Female

Prefer not to say

2. Age *

Mark only one oval.

< 20

20-34

35-50

> 50

48
3. Education *

Mark only one oval.

Matriculate (upto Grade 10)

High School

Bachelor Degree

Post Graduate Degree

Other

4. Employment Status *

Mark only one oval.

Student

Business

Public/Private Sector Job

Retired

Other

5. Marital Status *

Mark only one oval.

Married

Unmarried

Other

49
6. Income per annum (in Rs) *

Mark only one oval.

< 2.5 lakhs

2.5 - 5 lakhs

5 - 10 lakhs

10 + lakhs

7. What do you prefer to watch? *

Tick all that apply.

Television
OTT (Netflix, Amazon Prime, JioTV, etc)

8. Do you watch OTT? *

Mark only one oval.

Yes Skip to question 9

No Skip to question 20

Over The Top

Media Services
preference

50
9. What all OTT platforms do you watch? *

Tick all that apply.

Youtube Netflix

Amazon Prime Disney+ Hotstar

JioTV Sony LIV

51
 Voot Alt Balaji

Zee5 Other: Airtel Xstream

10. How long do you watch per day (in hours)? *

Mark only one oval.

<1

1-2

2-3

3-4

4+

11. Do you have a personal subscription, or do you use a friend's subscription to watch? *

Mark only one oval.

Personal

Other

52
12. How much would you be willing to pay for an OTT service, per month? *

Mark only one oval.

<50

50-200

200-400

400+

13. What is your preferred content on OTT? *

Tick all that apply.

Movies & TV Series

Webseries
Documentaries
Reality shows
Live sports
News

14. OTT gives ease of access anytime and anywhere? *

Mark only one oval.

1 2 3 4 5

Strongly Disagree Strongly Agree

15. Does price affect your decision to subscribe to an OTT service? *

Mark only one oval.

1 2 3 4 5

Strongly Disagree Strongly Agree

53
16. Does variety offered (movies, sports, live channels, etc) influence your subscription decision? *

Mark only one oval.

1 2 3 4 5

Strongly Disagree Strongly Agree

17. Does customer service impact your preference? *

Mark only one oval.

1 2 3 4 5

Strongly Disagree Strongly Agree

18. Do you like watching OTT only when alone? *

Mark only one oval.

1 2 3 4 5

Strongly Disagree Strongly Agree

54
19. What is your preferred OTT platform? (Kindly choose between 1-3 preferences) *
[You can scroll sideways for each choice to see all the available options]

Mark only one

oval per row. Disney+ Hotstar Sony Alt
JioTV LIV Voot Zee5
Balaji
You
tub
e

Net
flix

Am

azo

Prime

Television viewership preferences

20. How long do you watch per day (in hours)? *

Mark only one oval.

<1

1-2

2-3

3-4

4+

55
21. How much would you prefer to pay for an DTH service, per month? *

Mark only one oval.

50-200

200-400

400-600

600+

56
22. What is your preferred content on television? *

Mark only one oval.

Movies

TV Series

Documentaries

Reality shows

Live sports

News

Other

23. Television gives ease of access anytime and anywhere? *

Mark only one oval.

1 2 3 4 5

Strongly Disagree Strongly Agree

24. Does price affect your decision to subscribe to a DTH service? *

Mark only one oval.

1 2 3 4 5

Strongly Disagree Strongly Agree

25. Does variety offered (movies, sports, live channels, etc) influence your selection decision? *

Mark only one oval.

1 2 3 4 5

Strongly Disagree Strongly Agree

57
26. Does customer service impact your preference? *

Mark only one oval.

1 2 3 4 5

Strongly Disagree Strongly Agree

27. Do you like watching television only when alone? *

Mark only one oval.

1 2 3 4 5

Strongly Disagree S
t
r
o
n
g
l
y
A
g
r
e
e

This content is neither created nor endorsed by Google.

Forms

58