e4m Video Story:  Whatever we are doing for India is for India first: Prabhvir Sahmey, Samsung Ads

The sleek edge of a smart television is more than just a metaphor. It’s a mirror to consumer behavior, a medium of modern storytelling, and as Prabhvir Sahmey, Senior Director at Samsung Ads, explains, it’s also ground zero for the next great transformation in advertising. Sitting down with exchange4media for the latest episode of our TechTalk video series, Sahmey offered a window into how artificial intelligence, connected television and deep local insights are being woven into a tapestry of compelling, measurable and respectful advertising.

In a world where every device is vying for consumer attention, the television still retains its primacy, albeit with evolved expectations. Sahmey notes that the biggest challenge today isn't a lack of content but a surplus. “More and more people are spending more time discovering what they really want to watch,” he says. The solution? Smarter tech. “What we are looking or turning towards AI for is to help bring relevant content to the screen as quickly as possible and reduce that time to discover.”

AI, in Samsung’s vision, isn’t just a backend buzzword. It’s the engine behind a seamless, voice-assisted, data-refined experience where consumers don't scroll endlessly but are guided precisely. “Some of the new TVs we’ve seen are able to achieve that,” Sahmey points out, explaining that AI makes content discovery not only more efficient but also more enjoyable.

Naturally, where there’s engagement, there’s advertising. And where there’s advertising, there's innovation. Samsung Ads India is pushing formats that are fresh, dynamic and rooted in user respect. “This whole space is very new,” Sahmey admits, “both from the end user and advertiser point of view.” He elaborates on the need to tread carefully. “If you tend to show too many intrusive ads, the user does not appreciate that.” The goal, then, is to create formats that are “non-intrusive, simple and straightforward.”

Interactive ads, shoppable units, and CTA (Call to Action) ads are the new lexicon. These aren’t just campaigns; they’re conversations. “There is a growing demand for integrations between devices on which you see ads and devices on which you can transact,” Sahmey says. “We are definitely looking at a future where some of the shoppable content or shoppable ads will come into play.” This future is not far-fetched. AI-driven product placements that adapt to scenes on the fly are already on the radar. “Advertising or product placement will become natively part of the content,” he explains, conjuring up visions of movies where the brand logo on a soda can is personalized to the viewer, in real time.

But for all this forward thinking, Sahmey is quick to ground the conversation in the present. “We are maintaining a very steady state,” he clarifies, one where “people can relate to it both on the user side and the advertiser side.” Crucially, this involves measurement—a historic gap in the television space that Samsung Ads is working to close. “TV historically was not real-time measurable,” he points out. That’s changing.

Localization is a critical part of Samsung’s strategy. Unlike many global-first platforms that try to fit Indian markets into a Western framework, Samsung Ads goes the other way. “All of Samsung Ads are actually localized at the first instance,” Sahmey says. Services like Samsung TV Plus are tailored to the Indian context from day one. “Over the last five years, our key initiatives have been focused on making sure that whatever we do for India is for India first.”

An example of this India-first mindset is the rollout of actionable ads. These allow advertisers to embed QR codes directly into TV ads, creating a trackable path from impression to interaction. “People use QR codes as part of TV ads,” Sahmey explains, “but what we’ve now brought to India is the ability to connect the impression delivery with the QR code scan and measure if TV is influencing a purchase downstream.” The solution may sound simple, but its implications are profound—finally, a bridge between the elusive reach of television and the hard metrics of digital.

About 90 to 95 per cent of Samsung Ads’ business in India is built on local insights and realities. The remaining five per cent? Global best practices with minimal friction. Yet, in a neat inversion, India is also influencing global operations. Sahmey notes that India is far ahead of markets like the US when it comes to streaming behavior. “In India, we’re talking about 90 per cent of Samsung TVs watching streaming content and 10 per cent clean broadcast. In the US, it’s still 60 per cent broadcast, 40 per cent streaming.” As markets mature, India’s streaming-first approach becomes a reference point. “Insights of how a streaming user uses a device and interacts with ads is fueling what future products the US market brings on board,” Sahmey says.

Naturally, the topic of data privacy comes up. Sahmey is unequivocal. “No PII (personally identifiable information) is ever linked to any advertising or content,” he asserts. With TVs being multi-user devices—often shared by adults and children alike—Samsung adheres to strict compliance protocols, including India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act. “Privacy is the center of our ad ecosystem,” Sahmey states. Instead of emails or phone numbers, Samsung uses anonymous device IDs for tracking, balancing marketer needs with consumer dignity.

As CTV becomes a more central part of brand strategies, the question is—has it reached critical mass? Not quite, says Sahmey. “CTV is still not critical mass. You need to cross a hundred, 150 million device base to be considered critical mass.” Samsung TVs often sit in higher-income households, making the early adopters ideal targets for premium brands. But widespread adoption is still a couple of years away.

“There are about 50 to 60 million connected TVs in India,” Sahmey says, explaining that the calculation only includes devices sold since 2015, when smart TVs became mainstream. With roughly 15 million TVs sold annually, of which 80 to 90 per cent are smart TVs, it’s a steady climb to the 100 million mark. “We’re still two or three years out before we get there,” he estimates. Factors that could accelerate this include pricing shifts and better financing options.

And yes, Sahmey’s not just talking AI; he’s using it too. “I’ve been playing with Perplexity, definitely with Gemini as well as ChatGPT,” he says. For him, the real utility lies in perspective. “Where AI assistance helps me sometimes is, am I missing a point when I’m addressing a certain problem?”

Sort of like what Samsung Ads is doing for CTV advertising in India.

Watch the video for the full conversation.