Future of digital platforms

Authored by Shekhar Dahal, Script Writer & Assistant Director, The Visual House.

Technology is evolving every day in this ever changing world, where digitization seems to be at the core of everything. Since the turn of the millennium, we are going through a sort of digital revolution, which has further picked up pace in the subsequent decade. This cultural change has been greatly beneficial for the Over-The-Top (OTT) media platforms.

Future is now for OTT media services

The big game players like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, HBO, etc. have unprecedented reach and due to easy and cheap internet services, they are thriving like never before. OTT media services are even challenging big studios at their own game. Let’s look at the example of Netflix, which got its first Academy nomination in 2014 for ‘The square’ in the best documentary feature category and this year at the Oscars, it got a whopping 24 Nominations. So, it is safe to say that while earlier these services were seen as an alternative, now they have become a priority for the audience.

Indian OTT platforms have also seen a great rise in viewership in the last year or two, which further is a sign that the public is choosing OTT over other platforms for entertainment. Even Netflix and Amazon are releasing content directed towards Indian market, which seems to be growing every day. Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, during HT Leadership Summit in New Delhi in December 2019, announced that the US based company will invest 3000 crore rupees in the Indian market in the next two years with the target of attracting 10 Crore subscribers in India, which is 25 times its subscriber base in 2019. Hastings also emphasised that the Indian content is being globally accepted, citing the example of Chotta Bheem, he said that it was viewed by more than 2.7 crore households outside India, which is a testament of global appeal of Indian content.

Similarly, Amazon is eyeing to woo Indian audiences through its video platform, Amazon Prime Video. Jeff Bezos, during his visit to India in January this year, promised to double down Prime Video’s investment in India, mentioning how Amazon Video Platform is doing well all over the world, but nowhere it’s doing better than India. With this in mind, Prime Video has targeted to release at least 10-12 Indian originals to further strengthen its Indian subscriber base. The potential of OTT in India is also shown by the fact that the Hotstar’s popularity has propelled media mogul like Disney to acquire it, and other OTT media services like Sony Liv, ZEE5, ALTBalaji, etc. also have their say in the market. Also, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic has made it evidently clear that not just the present, but the future also lies in OTT media services. Due to the new rules of social distancing, theatres are closed and movies like Gulabo Sitabo and Dil Bechara have opted OTT platform for their release. Further, several other releases are also lined up exclusively for OTT services, which again highlights their popularity among the masses.

Even according to the 2018 report of Boston Consultancy Group(BCG), the Indian OTT market will exponentially rise to $500 million by the year 2023, which is roughly around 8 to 10 times its current share. Similarly, as per the FICCI report, this sector in India will reach $300-350 million by 2021. So, the balance of power has already started to shift towards OTT media services and it’s not the question of “if”, but rather “when” we will accept that the OTT is the future of entertainment.

 

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