Television Advertising Slips 7% as FMCG Holds Ground, E-commerce and New-Age Categories Gain: TAM Report

Television advertising saw a correction in the first seven months of 2026, with indexed ad volumes per channel falling 7% compared with the same period in 2025. The decline points to a more measured approach to television spending even as the medium continued to attract large advertisers, particularly from FMCG. At the same time, the composition of television advertising showed some movement, with e-commerce services, biscuits, fitness, two-wheelers and life insurance among the categories recording the strongest growth.

According to TAM AdEx’s Jan-Jul 2026 Television Advertising Report, indexed television ad volumes stood at 93 in January-July 2026, against a base of 100 for January-July 2025. TAM AdEx, which monitors more than 600 television channels, described the movement as a phase of strategic recalibration in advertiser spending. The report also noted that television advertising had already declined 9% in January-July 2025 over January-July 2024, making the latest correction part of a broader period of moderation.

The decline, however, was not evenly distributed across sectors. Food and beverages remained the largest advertising sector on television, accounting for 23% of ad volumes in January-July 2026. Services followed with 16%, while personal care and personal hygiene contributed 15%. Household products accounted for another 10%, followed by personal healthcare at 6% and hair care at 5%. The top 10 sectors together accounted for nearly 90% of television advertising volumes, showing how concentrated television remains around a relatively small group of consumer-facing categories.

The sector rankings also indicate some movement in advertiser priorities. Personal care and personal hygiene, building and industrial materials and equipment, BFSI and education improved their positions in the top 10 compared with January-July 2025. That shift came even as food and beverages retained the number one position. The data suggests that television continues to serve categories with broad consumer reach, while sectors beyond traditional FMCG are also increasing their presence.

At the category level, the dominance of everyday-use products was even more visible. Toilet soaps led with a 6.3% share of television ad volumes, followed by toilet and floor cleaners at 5.9%. E-commerce, media, entertainment and social media accounted for 3.8%, chocolates 3.6% and toothpastes 2.8%. Washing powders and liquids contributed 2.6%, while biscuits, milk beverages, aerated soft drinks and retail outlets operated by jewellers also featured in the top 10. Together, the top 10 categories accounted for 33% of television ad volumes.

Biscuits were the notable new entrant into the top 10, moving from rank 23 in January-July 2025 to rank seven in the latest period. Chocolates also moved sharply higher, while washing powders and liquids slipped in ranking. Five of the top 10 categories retained their respective positions from the previous year. The changes suggest that while television remains heavily dependent on established FMCG categories, the competitive mix within those categories is not static.

The most striking growth, however, came from categories outside the traditional television advertising core. Ecom-Other Services recorded a 10.2-times increase in ad volumes, making it the fastest-growing category in the report. Biscuits followed with a 2.1-times increase. Other hair dressing grew 3.8 times, while fitness equipment and clinics increased 2.9 times and range of hair care doubled. Noodles and pasta grew 67%, life insurance 46%, and chocolates and coffee each recorded 36% growth. Two-wheelers grew 35%. TAM AdEx said more than 150 categories registered positive growth during the period.

The advertiser rankings, meanwhile, show that television remains firmly anchored in large FMCG businesses. Reckitt Benckiser India emerged as the largest advertiser during January-July 2026, moving up from second place in the previous year. Hindustan Unilever, which had led the ranking in January-July 2025, moved to second place. Godrej Consumer Products retained third position, while Cadburys India, Coca-Cola India and Nestle India occupied the next three spots. P&G was seventh, followed by Wipro Enterprises, Britannia Industries and Google.

The concentration is significant. The top 10 advertisers accounted for 43% of television ad volumes during the period, while seven of them improved their rankings over January-July 2025. Three new names entered the top 10 compared with the previous ranking: Wipro Enterprises, Britannia Industries and Google. Their presence indicates that while FMCG continues to dominate television, the medium is still attracting advertisers from technology and other consumer categories.

Brand-level data reinforces the dominance of FMCG. Harpic Power Plus 10x Total Clean was the most advertised brand on television during January-July 2026, followed by Dettol Toilet Soaps and Dettol Antiseptic Liquid. Lizol All In 1, Dettol Icy Cool and Harpic Bathroom Ultra 10x occupied the next three positions. Moov Pain Balm, Ultratech Cement, Flipkart.com and Google Search Engine completed the top 10.

Seven of the top 10 brands belonged to Reckitt Benckiser, while two were from Hindustan Unilever. Yet the top 10 brands together accounted for only 11% of total television ad volumes, suggesting that despite the dominance of individual FMCG players, television advertising itself remains fragmented across thousands of brands. TAM AdEx recorded more than 7,200 brands on television during the period.

The choice of television genres remained relatively stable. General entertainment channels, or GECs, accounted for 30% of ad volumes in January-July 2026, followed by news at 25% and movies at 23%. Music contributed 9% and kids' channels 4%. Together, the five leading genres accounted for more than 90% of television advertising volumes. GEC remained the leading genre, mirroring its position in the corresponding period of 2025.

What emerges from the report is not a collapse in television advertising, but a market undergoing a reset. Overall volumes are down, yet large FMCG advertisers continue to commit heavily to the medium. At the same time, categories such as e-commerce services, fitness, insurance, two-wheelers and biscuits are expanding their television presence. The result is a television advertising market that is smaller in volume than a year ago, but not necessarily narrower in advertiser participation.

The bigger shift may therefore be in where television's growth is coming from. Traditional mass categories continue to provide the scale, while newer and faster-growing categories are using the medium to build reach. With 150-plus categories recording positive growth despite the overall decline in indexed ad volumes, the January-July data suggests that television's role in the advertising mix is changing through reallocation rather than simple withdrawal