OTT (Over the Top) media services which offer direct streaming services to viewers, have been gaining popularity worldwide. Some of the frontrunners of such services are Netflix and Amazon Prime, which remain popular worldwide. However, the scenario is quite different when it comes to the Indian OTT industry. According to a report released by Counterpoint Research in April 2018, the Indian streaming platform Hotstar is the most popular OTT platform in India. Hotstar is closely followed by Amazon’s Prime Video and SonyLIV, while Netflix ranks 4th.
The popularity of OTT platforms is slowly rising with the increase of local OTT platforms like ALTBalaji, Voot and SonyLIV, which are giving direct competition to foreign platforms like Prime Video and Netflix. Recently, the popular food delivery app Zomato also joined the OTT industry with the introduction of its Zomato Originals. The main reason behind so many new OTT platforms coming to the market is the increasing profits generated by such platforms in India.
The video OTT revenue in India was Rs. 2,019 crores in 2017. It is expected to reach Rs. 5,955 crores by 2022. With 500 million internet users, another number which is growing steadily at the rate of 8 percent, India has become the number one market for media and entertainment sector. It is also reported that the Indian OTT market is set to outperform the global OTT market and will likely be ranked among the top 10 by 2022.
With so many options, the competition between the various platforms has also grown. The platforms are investing in originals produced by the platform itself in order to attract audiences. The success of Netflix’s Sacred Games and Ghoul, Prime Video’s The Family Man and Hotstar’s AIB On Air and Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai proved original series are a working formula. With Indian audiences looking for good original content, the platforms are taking full advantage in order to increase their revenue.
Another factor contributing to the popularity of certain platforms is the pricing of these OTT platforms. The prices play a really important role as many local OTT platforms provide the majority of their content free of cost, while international platforms like Netflix and Prime Video have a process of monthly or annual subscription in order to let the users access their content. This is a major reason behind the popularity of local OTT platforms.
With the explosion of OTT platforms in recent years and with the availability of affordable data, the consumption of digital media has also increased. It will be interesting to see what kind of strategies these OTT platforms will follow in order to attract more audiences to their channels.
