OTT Platforms - A big shift in the conventional entertainment industry.

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OTT Platforms - A big shift in the conventional entertainment industry.


An over-the-top (OTT) media service is a streaming media service offered directly to viewers via the Internet. With over 40 over-the-top media services (OTT) in India, more and more people are opting to watch content online. In the fiscal year 2018, the OTT market in India was worth ₹2150 crore and in 2019 its value grew to ₹35 billion. As per the survey, India’s video streaming industry is set to be valued by INR 11.97K crore by 2023. This growth is directly connected to the surge in the number of internet users which are expected to cross 735 million by 2021. Indian cinema suffers amid nationwide lockdown to combat the spread of novel corona virus. Many films have postponed their release and, with the increasing cases of the virus, it does not look like we will be seeing them in theatres anytime soon. Many film producers are moving towards over–the-top (OTT) platforms, digital streaming media services, to release their movies. We have been observing that lot of new Bollywood movies are coming up for a release on OTT platforms these days.  This platform has opened up new ways for Indian Cinemas to generate revenue during Covid-19 effected situation in the country.  Moreover, we have also been witnessing that in recent times quite a good number of TV shows are being released and the same have been appreciated by the viewers. The shows which recently gained the most popularity are:  Special Ops, Panchayat, Patal Lok, Arya and Asur. The subscription income of OTT content providers has been increasing in a phenomenal manner with the aggressive advertising and providing entertaining and good quality content.

 As per survey top 5 metro cities account for 55% of the total video OTT users, while tier I cities account for 36℅ of the users.  The top five OTT providers in India are:

  • Disney+Hotstar
  • Amazon Prime videos
  • Netflix
  • Sony LIV
  • Voot

Due to work from home and social distancing measures, the average screen time has also increased manifold and OTT platforms have been witnessing a boom.

OTT platforms like Hotstar, Amazon Prime, and Netflix have seen more than 80%  increase in time spent.

With good data speed availability in tier II / tier III cities, we foresee a widespread demand across the country for OTT content.

We witness, people have been shifting towards video streaming through internet from the traditional DTH services. OTT service providers are giving better content as well as video quality in comparison to traditional TV shows. The cost structure for access to OTT is not much costly in comparison to DTH services. Looking at the trend and consumer shifting pattern and preferences, the DTH service providers will be struggling to survive in a few years.

 


CINEMA THEATRE VS. OTT CONTENT:

The movie theatres are still yet to open in the country even after declaring unlock 3.0. The reason is obvious that still social distancing has to be maintained for near term looking at the spike in corona virus case numbers increasing every day. Therefore, Multiplex’ future in India is not looking encouraging for medium term.  Majority of already completed movies are signing up on these OTT platforms so that their producers could generate revenues to atleast cover their costs. Although, a hard time for film industry and large screen players but at the same time it’s a boom time for viewers as they are able to see new movies on small screens while bearing a very economical cost of subscription. Watching movies at home is much cheaper in comparison to going to theatre.  The low-cost subscription charges of streaming services will greatly shift viewers from theatre to home screen and theatre concept will be badly affected in long run. This change in consumers shifting will increase a good demand for TV screen set and this industry is likely to see a promising future.

The OTT content providers are providing much better content quality in comparison to traditional TV serials. They are providing better script plus the stories are not stretched too long as we see in TV serials. These are the factors attracting public to prefer OTT platforms. Convenience, freedom and flexibility are also the reason for popularity of OTT platforms as people are not necessarily bound to timing. They can access anything as per their convenience. In addition, more choice is available for them to choose any thing as per their preferences.

Although the OTT platforms are gaining popularity due to all these factors but at the same time, we have been witnessing some negative aspects of OTT content. There is no censorship on the content and we are seeing that many low-quality video contents are also being provided on these platforms. It is feared, that this will have psychological negative impact in society and morale values. However, many countries are having their own guidelines and control measures for OTT content. Our government should also provide a strict guideline in the matter so that some control can be imposed to check the negative psychological impact of the same on society.

In conclusion we can say that with this changing trend in entertainment segment, viewers and OTT service providers will be in a win-win situation while DTH and theatre concept are likely to be hit badly for the long run.

-Rajendra Jhanwar


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