In year, 2022 is going to be an exciting year for all the OTT development companies as content will be stronger than ever. Even before there was a pandemic situation the Future of OTT platforms were pretty popular amongst the youngsters and teenagers especially. We have always said that the premium content is the winner. The OTT industry will have to concentrate on the quality content rather than the quantity of content. After the pandemic has hit the world the whole world has moved to OTT platforms instead of watching content over television.
The OTT has become the most popular platform for binge watching content and for it’s ease of use. OTT not only provides a great platform for watching movies but also TV shows and web series and for watching other content. OTT in the past few years have seen a large number of subscriptions and also number of hours people have started spending on watching content has increased. According to size of OTT market in India, the number of minutes people spent watching OTT content inclined from 181 to 204 billion minutes in 2021.
If you want to watch some of the best movies and web series on OTT platforms get best subscription plan. Some of the best OTT platforms like Amazon Prime Video and Netflix have cut down their subscription plan that has attracted more number of users. Movies like ‘Pushpa’ of Allu Arjun has not only collected a good amount at the box office but also had a great demand at Amazon Prime OTT platform. The revenue from this movie has kept on increasing week after week. As a result of a high demand of the movie it was released on OTT platform and did fairly well even on OTT platform. This movie has earned 400% revenue.
What is OTT?
The OTT stands for Over-the-Top. The word over the top means that streaming can be done across the different devices whenever and wherever we want over a secured internet connection. You can watch TV content and films over the internet without the need for any traditional broadcast, cable or satellite providers. People can just pay any internet provider instead of any cable provider and watch any favorite content seamlessly over an internet connection without having to pay for any cable TV.
Over-the-Top (OTT) is referred as method of sending content over a high speed internet connection instead of the content being shared by traditional distributors. The OTT content can be watched over the phone, tablet or laptop or connected TV. OTT platforms has already entered almost every household in India. India has approximately 350 million OTT subscribers today, which is believed to hit 500 million by 2023. The same report also focuses on Indian audience getting internet ready, and by 2023, around 85 percent Indian audience will be prepared to get entertained through content streamed on OTT platforms.
Which Are The Most Popular OTT Platforms In India?
Over-the-top media services (OTT) platforms have become really popular in India over the past few years. An over-the-top is the streaming media service offers directly to viewers through an internet connection directly to the viewers. OTT bypasses cable, satellite television platforms and broadcast which are considered as the traditional controller or distributor of such content. Due to the Covid-19 outbreak in country, there has been many movies that are majorly released on the OTT platforms and has gained immense popularity on OTT platforms. Many filmmakers have moved to OTT platforms to release their films and while theatres may remain closed. India has lots of options when we talk about the OTT services.
Some of the most popular OTT platforms in India are :-
- Disney+Hotstar
Disney+Hotstar is an Indian over top streaming service that is owned by Novi Digital Entertainment that is a subsidiary of Disney’s Star India. It is featured as among the top ten OTT platforms in India which offers a wide range of content from different categories. It has two paid subscription plans that is “VIP” and “Premium.” The VIP content focuses on the domestic programs and sports content and Premium content features premium international films and television series. Disney+Hotstar can be played only one device at a time with a stereo audio quality and 720p video quality. You will be able to watch on a mobile device only with a plan. By subscribing to a proper subscription plan you can get 1080p video quality on this plan. With a premium plan you can log in from different four devices at a time. The plan also supports 4K video quality and Dolby 5.1 audio quality. - MX Player
MX Player is a Video-on-Demand (VOD) platform and video streaming is developed by MX Media and Entertainment. This has a streaming library of over 1,50,000 hours across 12 different languages. MX Player is available on iOS, web and Android. The MX Player is available for absolutely free of cost for the users to explore. - Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Prime Video is a very popular video streaming service or OTT service in India. This OTT was launched in year 2016 in the country and has been among the top ten OTT platforms in India from the day of its launch. Amazon Prime Video is available in different six Indian languages in the year 2018. This also launched Amazon Prime Music in February 2018. The prime subscription includes free Amazon music alongside unlimited free, quick delivery. - Netflix
Netflix is one of the most popular streaming service in India. It offers a four subscription plan that includes Mobile, Basic, Standard and Premium. Netflix can stream on multiple devices and the picture quality depends upon the subscription plan. The premium plan that offers Ultra HD playback across the four screens simultaneously. Netflix has the toughest competition with the other OTT platforms such as Amazon Prime, Voot, Hotstar and Eros Now etc. Other platforms offers a low subscription rates than Netflix as a result Netflix faces stiff competition in India. It is among the top most highly preferred OTT platform in India due to it’s wide range of content and amazing quality it provides. - ZEE5
Zee5 is video on demand service that is run by Essel Group through its subsidiary Zee Entertainment Enterprises. It was launched in 2018 with content in 12 different languages. Subscribers shall be able to enjoy entertainment content with no ads and across the different devices. There re very popular TV shows that gets streamed on Zee5 that gets an online platform before telecast on television. - Sony LIV
Sony Liv is an Indian general entertainment which is a video on demand service that is owned by Sony Pictures Networks India Pvt. Ltd. which is based in Mumbai, India. Sony Liv’s library consists of past 18 years of content from Sony Entertainment Network Channels in India. This app has content from many channels like Sony TV, Sony SAB, Sony Ten, Sony Max, Sony MAX 2, Sony PIX and Sony Six. Sony Liv is the first Indian based over the top service to produce music content for a Hollywood feature film. Sony Liv app has bagged it’s top ten positions in OTT media service due to telecast of sporting events. - Jio Cinema
Jio Cinema is an Indian-based OTT platform that is offered by the Ambani-owned telco, Reliance Jio. It is a platform that is used only by the Jio users that is offered without any additional charges. It has all Jio’s postpaid and prepaid plans. Streaming service publishes movies, documentaries, TV shows and other Jio exclusives. The Jio service was launched on September, 2016. The app supports both web and smartphone platforms. This app makes it to the top most OTT platforms in India. Jio Cinema is free to download app and service is available in Jio plans. - Hoichoi
Hoichoi is a video-on-demand (VOD) and over-the-top streaming service focusing majorly on the Bengali language content. It is owned by SVF Entertainment PVT Ltd with headquarters in Kolkata, India. It was launched on 20 September 2017. It is available on Android, Apple TV, iOS, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, LG Smart TV, Samsung TV, Android TV. This app has wide range of films and over 1000 Bengali songs for audio streaming globally. - Sun NXT
Sun NXT is an Indian based video on demand service run by Sun TV Network that runs South Indian content. This app was launched in 2017 and has content ranging in six languages- Tamil, Malyalam, Bengali, Kannada, Marathi. Sun NXT app is available for all the android and iOS, smart TVs and other devices. You can watch most of your favorite south Indian movies of different languages. There is a monthly and quarterly subscriptions that allows one screen while an annual subscription plan allows four screens to run simultaneously.
Popularity Of OTT Platforms In Modern Indian Families!
OTT has become a very popular overnight or just in one year due to Covid 19 pandemic. OTT is now in the greatest demand for fulfilling the entertainment needs of the people and has been there for a decade. OTT platforms have replaced all the traditional TV channels in India and has been fulfilling all the entertainment needs till eternity. OTT or Over-the-Top media platforms are best way to stream the online shows. You can access these OTT platforms from your mobile, laptop and connected TV. OTT can be streamed on the various gaming devices as well such as Firestick, Xbox, PlayStation etc. The streaming media is the only benefit the OTT platforms provides and you can download media in your streaming device and watch it offline. You can easily stream ad-free content.
OTT platforms has helped people to overcome loneliness and boredom at the same time. In the last year, the usage of OTT platforms has increased rapidly. The OTT market in India may reach $2.9 billion in revenues if it continues to grow at a 28.6% rate. But the percentage may also change depending on various situations, including the consumers’ behavior, mobile networks, pandemics, the importance of data in county areas, etc.
How Does the OTT Market Impacts India?
There has been a sudden change and transformation in the past one decade as the OTT platforms has completely overshadowed the television programs. Now you can choose your own favorite show and streaming device on which you want to watch the content. The latest technology has completely transformed the life almost effortlessly. You can access your favorite content from any location and at any point of time. There has been a sudden rise in the use of OTT platforms after the pandemic situation has hit globally. Some of the important and popular OTT platforms are Disney Plus, Netflix and Amazon Prime and many other apps. These OTT platforms have been pretty satisfying for the viewers as it offers a wide range of varied content. OTT has systematically replaced the traditional TV shows and traditional mediums of entertainment.
The subscription cost is low which is the prime reason for preferring OTT platforms. The viewers are much inclined towards OTT platforms such as Netflix and Amazon Prime. The Indian viewers are much inclined towards canceling a premium subscription plan and due to high cost they are more inclined towards cancelling their subscription plan. In such a way an OTT platform can loose out a good number of subscribers.
According to the “Indian Over-the-Top (OTT) Platforms Report 2020” report published by the MICA Ahmedabad, the number of male viewers of OTT apps is more than female viewers in India. The most viewed apps in India by males are Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hotstar. The least traffic in females is of around 25-45 age groups. But Voot has around 54% of female users.
OTT impacts different age groups in India in different ways. These are the following age group which are highly impacted by OTT service :
- The children between the age of 8-15 have highest preference in OTT apps in comparison to people belonging to a different age group. The OTT platforms serves an unlimited entertainment that has a wide range of content including content suitable for children. Any documentaries or all education based content for the children belonging to the specific age group.
- OTT platforms helps the business owners to bring value to the younger generation through an entertainment and education. The OTT platforms are high in demand amongst the viewers aged between 18-32 that can serve as the source of entertainment in their idle time. It is the generation that does binge-watch content and the demand is rising rapidly.
- OTT platforms also entertains the older generation and senior people as they also a have a section specifically designed for their age group. It helps older generation to cope up with their loneliness. There is content in fitness, health tips and diet plans for older and younger generation. OTT has wide range of content catering to the needs of the people belonging to every generation.