OTT famously known as Over The Top has come a long way in India and there is no stopping. The technology that refers to the delivery of audio and video over the internet is growing exponentially not only in India but, across the globe as well. There is a rise in the number of people shifting their interest toward web based OTT content. With the start up boom and the availability of services online like e tailing, banking, ticketing, entertainment and so on, a large number of people across all age groups are making the best use of the internet. With the deeper penetration of smartphones, faster internet speeds, a wide range of original content people are craving for more digital videos and instant content.

The Global Video Insights Report released by Vuclip revealed as much as 55 % of viewers in India have shifted to smartphones and mobile network usage from broadband as they find it easy to watch  anywhere and everywhere. When compared to traditional broadbands, OTT comes with the latest range of fresh content, high definition quality videos and buffer free experience elevating the primary expectations of customers.

Platforms such as YouTube provides opportunities for independent content creators who can publish their personalised videos without any hassle. Broadcasters who have their own content or video platforms with a variety of publishers are driving the market such as Hotstar, BigFlix, Eros Now, Voot, Viu and so on. However, with the entry of Netflix in India, independent professional content productions are only getting intense in terms of competition.

The very famous Hotstar, was launched back in February 2015 and quickly became one of the largest video on demand platforms in India. Initially, Hotstar was one of the few platforms to provide the best TV shows, movie premieres, live sports and events from across the world. Moving onto Eros Now, it is the OTT arm of Eros International launched in the same year, as Hotstar. The platform works on building content around its parent firm’s library of Bollywood movies and original content as well. While other competitors are in the line including Viu, Voot and SonyLiv, Netflix entered the OTT market in India and is striving hard to change the game. However, to make the competition even more interesting, Netflix recently launched its first Hindi original series Sacred Games and it is receiving a massive positive response from across the globe. Hindi continues to be the most consumed language when it comes to online videos. Hence, the competition to provide with the best and entertaining content is really intensifying by the day.  According to a report, Hindi videos recorded 20,550 million views in the year 2017 in India, across all the platforms. The OTT video market in India is bustling with the competition! The market potential for online content viewing is huge. The emergence of Video on Demand (VOD) service providers brought an evolution from broadcasting to narrowcasting. As of now, viewers can choose from a diverse catalogue of video content in different genres and languages of their preference and watch it whenever and whatever they like.

In a country like India, the media and entertainment sector is rapidly growing and with the emergence of live and linear OTT, it is definitely the next big thing!