A survey done by Vuclip, a premium mobile video on demand service provider found most Indians do not prefer to pay for video content and would like to download it for free.
This finding comes close to the heels of the launch of Netflix in India.
The subscription based video streaming company rolled out its service in India on January 6 as part of its global expansion plans along with several other countries. Netflix is hugely popular in the US and the other developed economies.
In India it has rolled out plans starting at Rs. 500 per month. The premium plans are priced at Rs. 650 and Rs. 800.
"Downloads via torrent are dominant in India as compared to download through other subscription based websites. Propensity to purchase videos is significantly higher in developed nations (52 per cent) compared to India (23 per cent)," said the survey by the premium mobile video on demand service provider, Vuclip.
It added that 56 per cent of Indian viewers prefer features that help them download videos for off-line viewing.
The survey noted that one-third of the users in India remove the downloaded content the same day they view it, indicating the prevalence of pseudo streaming on account of limited storage space.
The online survey had 4600 users across six developing nations (India, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, UAE and the Philippines) and four developed nations (USA, UK, Singapore and Australia).
The respondents were 18-35 years old smartphone internet users who viewed videos on their smartphones at least once a month.
It noted that video consumption while travelling is considerably higher in India (56 per cent) as compared to developed nations (46 per cent).
"Unlike developed markets wherein usage of WiFi and mobile networks for accessing mobile internet is proportionate (51 per cent and 49 per cent respectively), mobile network usage is significantly higher (65 per cent) in India. This can be attributed to lesser number of free WiFi zones," it said.
In India, laptops are used both to stream (30 per cent) and download (70 per cent) while smartphones are largely preferred for streaming (65 per cent) only on account of limited storage space, it observed.
"Streaming over a WiFi connection is however the most preferred on account of a better viewing experience," it said.
Smartphones are the most preferred device for personal video consumption in both the developed and developing markets, while PC or laptops are used more for video viewing with family and friends in India.
It pointed out that 85 per cent viewers in India consume short form video content (run time of under ten minutes) on smartphones as against 71 per cent on laptops.
User generated content is consumed more on smartphones (28 per cent) than on laptops (20 per cent).
It observed that frequency of viewing television in India is significantly higher than in developed nations with 87 per cent respondents choosing the TV as a preferred device for entertainment with family members as against 72 per cent in developed markets.
"About 91 per cent viewers who participated in the survey indicated that in addition to live broadcast, they preferred the television for long form consumption such as films and videos with run time of more than ten minutes.
Only 33 per cent of smartphone users in India use the device to view such content," it said.