OTT: Has TV Found Its Competitor?
With Amazon Prime Video launching its first original series in India, home-grown Hotstar streaming live sports, US-based Netflix showcasing international episodes, the landscape of consumption of premium entertainment is transforming.
The trend of waiting for hours for a specific show is now disappearing as all mainstream seasons along with original content is now easily available and accessible on the internet. The Over the Top (OTT) platforms now deliver TV and film content online, without requiring a user to subscribe to satellite or traditional cable.
Inside Edge, the new show by Amazon Prime Video starring Vivek Oberoi and Richa Chadha has added to the direct to consumer model that is gradually gaining momentum across the urban areas of India. The series is said to be launched in 200 countries on July 10.
The switch to OTT
Even though the concept of OTT services is new to India, there are already a number of market players existing in the telecom industry. Hotstar, Hulu, Netflix, Youtube, Voot to name a few. In the first 40 days of being launched, Hotstar reached 40 million downloads. Consequently, Hotstar has gained a potential market share through its live sports streaming.
According to the latest FICCI-KPMG report (2017) on media and entertainment, "Urban consumers have been early adopters of video, especially in the age group 15-34, which constitutes 70-75 per cent of the total Internet base. With on-demand accessibility and a latent demand for differentiated content, OTT video-on-demand (VoD) services have seen an upsurge in the last one year".
The entertaining web series are like the 30-minute pizza deliveries; instant and on-demand. The biggest consumers of these deliveries remain the millennials.
As smartphones are the personalised instrument of communication contrary to the television set-top boxes, it provides an opportunity for the individuals to watch their personal preferences online and customises the experience of the viewers with a personal touch that TV has failed to establish through time.
Why the sudden buzz?
The affordable data packs of Telecom companies like Reliance Jio, Airtel has opened the floodgates of OTT service providers. The launch of Jio in October 2016 got into the mainstream over 70 million mobile internet users.
As smartphones are packed with 3G and 4G network, the internet has gained users from all across the country. According to consultancy firm Deloitte, fast internet speed at affordable tariff rates and low-cost smartphones are the two key contributors to the growth of internet users in India. India is adding 6 million new Internet users every month who are exclusively accessing digital connectivity through their mobile phone.
Also, the users have shown willingness to pay for premium services and content. The original content by the various platforms has initiated many users to spend an average of Rs 500 every month to gain subscription.
"The digital video subscription market is estimated to be around Rs 35 to 40 billion by 2020," as per the Deloitte report.
The internet has been accused of being a disruptive force; the force that is swaying away from the public, especially the millennials. While the linear platform of TV has engraved its stronghold position through time, the online medium has advantages that are appealing and engaging the audience rapidly.
