An increasing number of people in metros and non-metros are using mobile devices to catch up on their daily dose of entertainment, with handsets emerging as a strong alternative to traditional sources like TV, mobile video and media firm Vuclip said in a study.
The study, conducted by marketing and research firm Millward Brown, said Vuclip's more than 20 million mobile video consumers in India are largely trending towards mobile devices as their go-to source for content.
About 81 per cent of metro respondents and 87 per cent in non-metros identified mobile phones as a preferred medium, Vuclip said in a statement.
"The mobile phone has emerged as a strong alternative to traditional entertainment media like television, as most of the Vuclip users surveyed regardless of region, watch videos from home (72 per cent of respondents)," the firm added.
The most popular genres among participants were movies and music, though in non-metro areas, the popularity of TV shows and lifestyle entertainment videos spikes.
"It's notable that there is a growing interest in longer videos on mobile, with most metro users (59 per cent) opting for videos over five minutes in length," Vuclip said.
The study polled over 500 respondents across India from the Vuclip user base. Fifty-eight per cent of the respondents were from metros and 42 per cent from non-metros. The greatest number of respondents (83 per cent) came from the age group of 18-34 years.
An overwhelming majority (80 per cent respondents) of Vuclip's consumers report said they watch videos on their mobile devices at least once every 2-3 days, with more than half opting to watch daily.
The study also revealed that 2G Internet connection is still the most widely used, making up 73 per cent of non-metro and 58 per cent of metro markets, although metro users report higher usage of 3G networks (24 per cent versus 19 per cent).
Samsung and Nokia phones lead in both regions, with the former dominating metro areas and the latter favoured among those polled in non-metro regions, it added.
In metros, 73 per cent of consumers spend an average of over Rs 4,000 (around USD 65) for their device whereas in non-metro areas, 44 per cent of consumers favour phones priced less than Rs 4,000, the study said.
