Despite hit to consumption, TV advertising grows in second wave: BARC

The dent in consumption demand did not deter TV advertisers during the second wave of the pandemic, and the volumes in April and May have grown to go back to being at almost par with the years before the pandemic, a report said on Thursday.

When compared with the year-ago period, advertising volumes on television were higher by over 65 per cent because of the low base of the lockdown, the report by the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) said.

However, the volumes were lower in May 2021 when compared to the preceding April.

Policymakers are grappling with how to revive the dent to consumption demand as a result of the second wave of the pandemic, which also impacted vast expanses in rural India unlike the first one which was restricted to the urban areas.