Social Media Usage Jumps 87% As People Log Over 4 Hrs Online Daily

The first week of lockdown saw Indians spend more than 280 minutes a day on social media, a spike of 87% over the previous week, as people remained indoors. Streaming platforms and televisions also saw a rise in viewership, while outof-home (OOH) media and radio were neglected, according to a survey.

Social media usage, on average, before the lockdown was nearly 150 minutes per day. In the first week of lockdown, that figure jumped to 280 minutes per day, with 75% people spending more time on apps like WhatsApp, Twitter and Facebook compared to the week before. The survey respondents said they accessed social media often to consume news, and to communicate amid the lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic.

According to the Hammerkopf Consumer Snapshot Survey conducted on March 28 across 1,300 people in New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai, over-thetop (OTT) media consumption too saw a spike, with 71% people watching more than a week ago. The prime time for streaming platforms this week began at 7pm, unlike a week before, when it was between 10pm and 12am. Meanwhile, 76% of those surveyed said they watched TV in the morning between 8am and 9am.

“The digital habits are undergoing a dramatic change, with a fresh slew of consumer apps, benefiting from strong network effects in communication, entertainment, food and fitness, and enabling Indians like never before,” said Namagiri Anand, managing partner, Hammerkopf.

Tarun Katial, CEO at Zee5 India, said the platform has witnessed an increase in over 80% in subscription and over 50% in watch time in the last five days. Internet browsing too saw a 72% spike, compared to a week ago, with people turning to it for information and news amid the Covid-19 outbreak.

―Times of India