Overall, 320 minutes of media content is consumed, on average, in India every day, up from 270 minutes in 2013. This is predicted to rise by 2021 to 348 minutes per person per day.

“While television remains the dominant medium, internet consumption led by mobile shows the fastest growth. There is nothing more personal to the consumer than the handset and for many in India, the first taste of media consumption comes from the small screen,” said Tanmay Mohanty, Zenith India CEO, head global partnerships.

“Mobile consumption is only expected to go upwards with falling data prices, increased mobile penetration in tier two and three markets, availability of low-cost handsets, entry of 5G networks and explosion in vernacular content formats. Marketers who adequately invest in mobile technology and mobile-first strategies will reap the rewards.”

In India, media consumption through mobile internet has risen from 9.4 minutes daily in 2013 to 54 minutes this year. Zenith predicts it will reach 79 minutes by 2021.

Since 2015, the average amount of time people around the world spend accessing the mobile internet has risen from 80 to 130 minutes a day, at an average rate of 13% a year.

Around the globe, people will spend an average of 800 hours using the mobile internet this year – that’s equivalent to 33 days without sleep or pause, according to Zenith’s Media Consumption Forecasts. By 2021 the total is forecast to rise to 930 hours or 39 full days.

This year, consumers around the world are expected to spend an average of 479 minutes a day with media this year, up from 420 minutes in 2013.

Television remains the biggest medium globally, not just in India, capturing 167 minutes of viewing each day in 2019. While retaining its popularity as a medium, TV is expected to account for 33% of all media consumption in 2021, slipping from 35% this year.