The Instagram TV app is now compatible with more Samsung Smart TVs in the US. In addition, the company unveiled a slew of new capabilities designed to facilitate group video watching on bigger displays. In the United States, Samsung Smart TVs manufactured from 2020 onwards are now equipped with Instagram for TV, according to the meta-owned platform.
However, this move has sparked a strong debate in India. Most of the business experts feel that this development can really put a big dent in the television revenue, as the major chunk of the market share will be going in Meta’s favour.
How Instagram’s Entry Change the Dynamics of Indian TV Industry?
Sharing her thoughts on the future move, Tamanna Gupta, Guest Faculty, IIM Bangalore and Founder, Umanshi Marketing, stated, "For most of my career, television was the one room my smaller clients were locked out of. One thirty-second spot could eat at an SME's entire yearly budget before a single unit sold. So, they lived on Reels instead, doing sharp work at a fraction of the cost. Now Meta wants to put that same Reel on the living room screen, with the same targeting a founder can run from her own laptop. If this reaches India, the wall between 'social brands' and 'TV brands' starts to crack. A craft brewery in Bengaluru could share a screen with a national FMCG name. That isn't a media story. It's an access story."
This change would cause online media companies and streaming services to re-evaluate their current revenue models and consider adopting more hybrid approaches that incorporate streaming, social engagement, and commerce-driven advertising. It heralds the end of television as we know it, replacing it with an interactive, data-rich environment instead of a static broadcast medium.
It has the potential to revolutionise the way companies engage with large audiences in India by bringing together entertainment, social media, and online shopping in one seamless watching experience. In addition to improving advertising effectiveness, this change would alter Indian consumers' expectations of what digital television platforms can provide.
Elaborating further on the assumption, Dr. M Kishorebabu, Dean, Management, Humanities and Science, KL Deemed to be University, stated, "As a reflection on the reported launch of an Instagram TV application on Samsung televisions in the United States, it is important to consider its potential implications for India's television marketing and advertising ecosystem. If such a service were introduced in India, it could fundamentally transform the way television advertising operates by merging social media engagement with large-screen consumption habits across households. Unlike traditional television advertising that relies on broad targeting and passive viewing, this convergence would enable highly personalised, data-driven, and interactive ad experiences. Advertisers in India could benefit from real-time behavioural insights, improved audience segmentation, and seamless integration between content discovery and commerce.”
All Odds Not in Favour of Instagram
While this would further muddy the waters between television and social media from a communications perspective, it could also lead to higher standards for content. Expectations about originality, truthfulness, and narrative structure are likely to change when social media content is viewed on bigger displays.
Commenting on this line, Gaurav Singh, Chief Communications Strategist, Cynosure PR & Communications, said, "If Instagram introduces its TV app in India, the real shift will not be technological—it will be behavioural. Instagram has largely been a personal-screen platform, consumed individually on smartphones. A television presence would bring that content into a shared viewing environment. This changes the context in which creator content and brand messages are experienced. Content that works on a six-inch screen does not automatically work on a fifty-inch screen in a living room. Brands and creators may need to rethink how they capture attention, tell stories and remain relevant in a more collective viewing setting."
From the point of viewership, already this segment has seen a lot of transformation. With the launch of smart TVs, the television sector has become more of an app-based industry rather than a channel-driven sector. Plus, there are a few important standpoints where Instagram doesn’t fit the bill, especially when it comes to sporting events, political developments, movie viewing, etc. These segments require traditional viewing modes, and viewers will be more inclined to watch these events on regular television apps or channels.
Further stretching on these standpoints, Rakesh Raghuvanshi, CEO of Sekel Tech, said, “If and when Instagram launches its TV app in India, the bigger takeaway for me will not be content consumption but the creation of a new consumer intelligence layer within the living room. India’s connected TV audience numbers have crossed 120 million users, and along with smart TVs, they play a big role in the creation of data-rich environments."
“Television has evolved from a passive viewing platform into an addressable engagement channel with this. The combination of CTV viewing data with social interactions, search behaviour, mobile signals, and location intelligence allows brands to build a unified view of consumer intent and deliver highly contextual experiences. The real breakthrough lies in attribution and connecting television exposure to store visits, dealer enquiries, and offline purchases. This will ultimately help in transforming TV from a reach-driven medium into a measurable performance and commerce channel.” Raghuvanshi added.
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