ITV

Category: Over The Top Services

  • Neeraj Pandey, Voot Select unveil upcoming web series ‘Bandon Mein Tha Dum’

    Neeraj Pandey, Voot Select unveil upcoming web series ‘Bandon Mein Tha Dum’

    Mumbai: Voot Select on Wednesday launched the trailer of its upcoming web series, titled Bandon Mein Tha Dum. The series will show the nail-biting journey of the 2020/21 India tour of Australia. Directed by Neeraj Pandey the web series will soon premiere exclusively on Voot Select.

    The trailer was unveiled at a grand launch in the presence of ace cricketers Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammad Siraj, Cheteshwar Pujara and Hanuma Vihari and director Neeraj Pandey.

    Coupled with a powerful script, behind-the-scenes footage, candid narratives from the winning squad like Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Cheteshwar Pujara, Mohammad Siraj, Rishabh Pant and Hanuma Vihari, their coaches, as well as journalists who covered the series, Bandon Mein Tha Dum sheds light on the trials and tribulations that the Indian cricket team had to navigate ahead of their unforgettable victory against team Australia at their home ground of Gabba, where they hadn’t lost a Test match for 32 years. The web-series focuses on how the team played extraordinarily high-quality cricket and simultaneously redefined the concept of hard work, perseverance, determination, and commitment, setting the highest standards of sportsmanship while breathing new life into the fading format of Test cricket!

    Talking about how Bandon Mein Tha Dum came about, Neeraj Pandey said, “Bandon Mein Tha Dum is an epic tale that outlines ‘Miracles do happen’ and it happened in the India-Australia Test series 2020/2021 which culminated in India’s stunning defeat of the world no.1 test side at their hallowed home turf of Gabba where they hadn’t lost a test match for 32 years. The series was won by India in such a manner that it not only captured the imagination of the entire nation but also provided tremendous joy to the cricketing and wider sporting community all over the world at a time when people were still trying to come to terms with the devastation Covid-19 had brought in their lives. The human stories in this cricketing fairy tale elevated the series beyond a cricketing audience and created huge euphoria across all segments of Indian society. The nation was gripped and it was therefore befitting for us to bring the story to the people of India of one of the greatest comebacks in the history of sports and cricket.

    Nothing excited me more than retelling this story which went beyond high-quality cricket, hard work, perseverance, determination, commitment, sportsmanship and decoding the x-factor through the mind of the players which repeated the David Vs Goliath story!”

    Talking about the series, Viacom18 Digital Ventures chief operating officer Gourav Rakshit said, “At Viacom18 Digital Ventures we have successfully built an ecosystem that caters to the evolving needs of our viewers. With a strategy to create an everyday consumption proposition, we have consistently brought forward entertainment that is high in quality and binge-worthy. Our robustly curated content mix and our success with digital-first is a testament to our commitment to providing viewers with game-changing experiences. ‘Bandon Mein Tha Dum’ is the first of the many such narratives and we will continue to explore new genres and avenues that are in sync with our audience’s core values.”

    Further Viacom18 head- SVoD and international business Ferzad Palia added, “Bandon Mein Tha Dum is a story that every Indian deserves to know, and re-live. The series is based upon the unheard stories and the real struggles behind the victory of the Indian cricket team during one of it’s toughest times. Neeraj is a storyteller par excellence and we are honoured to have him create this special event series for our members. This is the first among many of an entertainment slate like never before. We’re certain that the series will set a new benchmark in special event storytelling.”

  • ‘RRR’ records 1000 minutes watch time on Zee5

    ‘RRR’ records 1000 minutes watch time on Zee5

    Mumbai: The film ‘RRR’ received 1,000 million streaming minutes and was trending #1 in all four languages on ZEE5. The movie has already broken all box office records and is receiving an overwhelming response by the audience on OTT as well, according to a company statement.

    Helmed by SS Rajamouli and produced by D. V. V. Danayya of DVV Entertainment, starring Jr. NTR, Ram Charan and Alia Bhatt in the lead roles, the film turns out to be a blockbuster hit. With ‘RRR’, ZEE5 adds another feather to its cap post the success of ‘The Kashmir Files’.

    Talking about the huge success of the film, ZEE5 chief business officer Manish Kalra said, “After the enormous success of ‘RRR’ in theaters, audiences have again rewarded the Magnum opus with an outstanding response on ZEE5. With the release of the film in 4 languages on ZEE5, the story was brought closer to the audience across languages in India. At ZEE5, we strive to offer the best in content and stories to our loyal and potential audience, and ‘RRR’ was yet another attempt from us to delight our subscribers.”

    Commenting on the success of ‘RRR’ actor Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao said, “Gratitude is what I feel when I see the love you are all showing to ‘RRR’ on ZEE5. It is so exciting to be in front of our audiences in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam. We are so glad to see your tremendous response.”

    Elated by the response, actor Ram Charan said, “We are overjoyed to see the love for ‘RRR’ on ZEE5! With the film’s awaited release in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam, we are as excited as you all. Thanks for appreciating the film.”

  • Vodafone Idea rolls out an ad-tech platform for the advertisers to connect

    Vodafone Idea rolls out an ad-tech platform for the advertisers to connect

    Mumbai: Digital revolution in India has led to innovation and significant growth in the ad-tech industry, thereby, also increasing the volume of investments in the industry. Generating content and programmatic media buying on customized platforms will be the new normal. As the Digital Adex juggernaut moves ahead unabated, Vi aims to participate as a major player in the multibillion-dollar Indian advertising industry. With this, India’s leading telecom operator Vi on Wednesday announced the launch of its world-class ‘Ad-Tech’ platform – Vi Ads – an Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Machine Learning (ML) driven Adtech platform. It gives marketers a programmatic media buying platform that is cutting edge and returns on investment (ROI) focused.

    Riding on Vi’s deep data science technology, Vi Ads will enable marketers to engage with the operator’s over 243 million subscribers through multiple channels like Vi owned digital media – Vi App, Vi Movies & TV App, and traditional channels like SMS, IVR calls. One of the key differentiators of Vi Ads is that it will be media agnostic and empower marketers to engage with Vi users on external media channels and publisher partners of Vi Ads. 

    Additionally, Vi Ads will offer a self-serve interface enabling marketers with full control of their campaigns from a campaign set up, tracking campaign performance to driving campaign insights. Since Vi Ads is built to achieve a full-funnel campaign objective, be it awareness, consideration or purchase – it caters to advertisers looking to drive reach, generate leads or drive sales. The combination of advanced features and ease of execution will appeal to large agencies and SMEs alike.

    In the last 10 years, Digital AdEx has grown at a compounded annual growth rate of 27 per cent. Even during the pandemic, when all other media saw a decline, Digital AdEx witnessed significant growth. Programmatic media buying has firmly taken root in India and its share has been increasing year on year, now standing at 42 per cent, as per Madison Advertising Report 2022.

    Commenting on the launch of Vi Ads, Vi CMO Avneesh Khosla said “With our programmatic platform – Vi Ads, we will address two of the biggest challenges faced by marketers today – authentic insights and enhanced reach. Firstly, it offers marketers the benefits of unique audience segments, interest groups and targeting parameters derived using Vi’s deep insights of our consumers built on opt-in data. Secondly, it allows advertisers to not only reach their chosen audiences over Vi’s own digital media like Vi app and Vi movies & TV app, but also on external third party programmatic media and traditional channels of SMS & IVR calls. This is a simple, easy to use and highly efficient solution for marketers to effectively reach out to the right target group with the most relevant messaging at any given point of time, while also providing a monetization opportunity to Vi as we aggressively build and scale our digital assets.” 

    The Vi Ads platform has been built in partnership with TorcAi, a global provider of audience infrastructure and programmatic solutions, leverages advanced data sciences & machine learning to stitch together legacy marketing & advertising technology platforms with new breed tech. TorcAi helps media value chain stakeholders to build and nurture audience assets by bringing together data and activation channels at the organizational level. 

    TorcAi Digital CEO Rohit Verma said, “This partnership, and the development of the Vi Ads platform, will enable Vi to connect their vast stores of customer insights with advertisers, and publishers, to deliver the right message, at the perfect time. We look forward to a long relationship with Vi and welcome the opportunity to deliver world-class products and technologies that will continue to revolutionize the way data is used to better engage with consumers across an ever-evolving digital backdrop.”

  • PlayboxTV appoints Rannvijay Singha as their first brand ambassador

    PlayboxTV appoints Rannvijay Singha as their first brand ambassador

    Mumbai: Recently featured on Shark Tank India, Indian actor, TV personality and video jockey (VJ) Ranvijay Sigha has been appointed as the brand ambassador for PlayboxTV.

    PlayboxTV is a super OTT Aggregator and economical entertainment app aiming to give every Indian easy access to online content. It aggregates noteworthy OTT platforms including but not limited to VOOT, Amazon Prime, SonyLIV, ZEE5, ShemarooMe and EPIC ON into a single app at an affordable price. Given Rannvijay’s extensive experience in television and media distribution, he is agreeably the most compatible fit as the company’s premier brand ambassador.

    PlayboxTV’s mission is to partner up with the best OTT platforms and consolidate their shows and movies to serve a unified community of consumers who are always on the lookout for good content.

    Regarding this exciting partnership, Ranvijay stated, “I’m extremely delighted to join the PlayboxTV family as a brand ambassador and investor. Having spoken to Aamir behind the scenes of Shark Tank India and having understood the product in-depth, I am confident that this collaboration will last for years to come.”

    The PlayboxTV app allows you to watch multiple OTT platforms and Live TV channels, on both TV and mobile devices. It customises your interests and choices and gives you recommendations based on your viewing history. With over 1,00,000 movies, 350+ Live TV channels and your favourite shows, the app makes sure that you can view your favourite content anytime, anywhere.

    PlayboxTV founder and CEO Aamir Mulani said, “We are beyond delighted to have partnered with Rannvijay and hope to disrupt this OTT industry. This partnership also opened a new horizon to the business with his expertise in media & Content IP Creation for the last 20 years.”

  • Short-form gaming platform ONMO targets 50 mn users: Krish Seshadri

    Short-form gaming platform ONMO targets 50 mn users: Krish Seshadri

    Mumbai: The confluence of casual gaming and esports is emerging as a potent business model for gaming platforms in India. One such platform ONMO, the gaming platform of listed firm OnMobile Global, is looking to grow its user base from over half a million to 50 million.

    The ONMO platform is a web-based application that can be accessed by any browser by simply typing the URL (uniform resource locator) in the address bar. Any casual gamer can start playing its myriad games that range from 8-ball pool, mini golf to tower crush, sudoku. The key difference is that the gaming experience is designed in such a way that the user won’t spend more than two to three minutes completing the gameplay.

    The quick burst of gameplay offered by the ONMO platform combined with the ability to wager real money (as little as Rs 2 to as much as Rs 20) to compete with other players is the secret sauce in its strategy to engage the gaming community in India.

    The company launched their first brand campaign ‘Just Beat It’ in April conceptualised by Lowe Lintas Bangalore. The film was supported by an influencer-led campaign featuring Tanmay Bhat, Neha Dhupia and Radhika Madan who challenged casual gamers to play on the ONMO platform and beat the records set by them on ONMO’s most popular games.

    According to E&Y, India has a 390 million online gaming community. There are 95 million paying gamers in India and 94 per cent of casual gamers play on the mobile. Esports and casual gaming revenues are estimated at Rs 2,900 crore in 2021 and the propensity for Indian consumers to pay for online games has increased as gaming gains social acceptance. Mobile gaming apps saw a 40 per cent increase in in-app purchases in 2021.

    With over two decades of operating experience, Krish Seshadri has experience leading global businesses across India, Asia-Pacific, USA and Europe. His experience spans building and scaling digital & technology products, businesses and organisations in online gaming, digital content & entertainment, social media platforms, fin-tech, online recruiting & ad-tech.

    An engineering graduate from Stanford University and an MBA from London Business School, where he was a Chevening Scholar, Seshadri has worked across a diverse set of companies. Early in his career, he was at AOL (now Verizon) in a range of leadership roles running product, content, marketing and sales operations in India and the US. He was head of growth and partnerships for Facebook India driving its user base in the country. He led the teams as general manager of Zynga where he built and grew leading social games. He was president of the online mutual fund platform FundsIndia. Before joining ONMO, he was CEO of online recruiter Monster.com.

    Seshadri joined OnMobile Global as CEO in August 2020 and later took on the role of CEO of ONMO in October 2021. His focus is on building the D2C (direct-to-consumer) product leveraging his prior experience at the social gaming platform Zynga.

    In a conversation with Indiantelevision.com, ONMO CEO Krish Seshadri spoke about the gaming platform, its features and functionalities, distribution strategy and growth outlook.

    Edited Excerpts:

    On the gaming platform ONMO

    Over the last two-three years, mobile gaming has become an extension of mobile entertainment. So, it was time for us to move into the adjacent mobile gaming market. We have two-three products in the mobile gaming segment. ONMO is one of the larger products that we’ve been building for a year and which I currently run.

    There are various elements to this product such as social gaming and esports. Mobile esports has become a reliable revenue model that is tried and tested across markets like India and the US. Esports is a big underlying peg of our product. We have also developed cloud-based games for our platform.

    Our focus is not on hosting complete games, rather, we’re more like the TikTok of gaming. Each gameplay lasts for about one minute, two minute or three-minute sessions. Our research shows that the young millennial audience prefers to consume entertainment in bite-sized chunks. There is long-form entertainment in their media consumption but increasingly a lot of content is being consumed in short bursts. The rise of short video platforms like TikTok and Chingari across global markets are evidence of this trend.

    We have a proprietary content management system that ingests content and identifies specific short gaming parts of a game. Those specific moments are then hosted on our platform available to players as challenges.

    ONMO is primarily a B2C (business to consumer) product but we’re also exploring telco partnerships to distribute our games. Currently, there are relationships with 100 telcos around the globe. We don’t develop the games on our platform, instead, we partner with different gaming companies across the world. There are partnerships with over 100 gaming companies. Our platform ingests the games that they have developed. We don’t develop the games per se, we partner with different gaming companies across the globe. We’ve got partnerships with over 100 gaming companies now. We go through the games that they have and put them as these shorter challenges and then host them on our platform.

    On the target market

    Our target audience is primarily casual gamers between the age of 18-35 in India, North America and Europe. In terms of distribution, we have developed a web-based app which means that you just need a mobile phone and a web browser to access our platform. We’re focused on mobile gamers and will likely develop a native app for Android or iOS that would be available on the Play Store or App Store. The advantage of a web-based app is that we can rollout and do testing across global markets without the hassle of permission that is required by the app marketplaces. A user just has to enter their Gmail, Facebook or mobile number and jump straight into the action.

    On the core offerings on the platform

    There are two core offerings on the ONMO platform. First, are the core game formats. Right now, we launched real money cash gaming in two formats for Indian users where they can battle using INR (Indian National Rupee). There is a cash tournament that has a start time and an end time. Any player can join this tournament and be ranked on the leaderboard. There is a distribution of prize money at the end of the tournament.

    Another format is our one-to-one cash battles where a player can challenge another player. The winner takes home the entire prize and the platform keeps a portion of the prize pool as a platform fee.

    We also have a new format that is not available on any other platform. We call it ‘Beat It’ tournaments. In this format, players can beat the highest score of the day for a particular game within 24 hours. The picture of the player gets published on the feed until someone else beats their score. Players keep attempting this again and again as everyone wants to beat the score of the day. This adds a competitive layer to the gameplay that increases engagement and retention. Every research that we’ve come across in casual gaming shows that adding a competitive element to your games greatly improves engagement on the platform. We’ve seen this format of the game grow by 3X quarter-on-quarter.

    The core product is cash tournaments and ‘Beat It’ challenges. Players in India can join and play with each other for cash (in rupees). We’ve also enabled Bitcoin transactions for players outside of India. For global players, enabling crypto payments is an important function because in the gaming community there’s a deluge of virtual tokens and users are habituated to using these tokens to purchase items. We pioneered virtual currencies when I was at Zynga with Zynga tokens. The only difference was that Zynga was a closed network but with crypto, these currencies can be sold and exchanged on an open network. It offers cross-region compatibility. Players across countries can wager against each other using a common token.

    On the platform metrics

    We launched cash battles in a beta format in January-February. We’ve grown to more than half a million monthly active users (MAUs) and we’ll probably double that number very soon. We’re growing at 70 per cent month-on-month and the number of game plays on our platform this quarter versus the last quarter is 3X.

    The business model of ONMO on the B2C side is mainly via our esports model – players wager money for challenges and tournaments. On the B2B (business to business) side, we are exploring a subscription model with our telco partners.

    On the growth strategy

    Our focus from a B2C perspective is primarily on India. By the end of the year, we’ll look at expanding to other geographies in North America and Europe. In five years, we see about 80 per cent of our revenues coming from the US primarily in the B2C area. From a casual gaming perspective, the amount of money esports gamers wage in the US is multiples that of what they wager in India. The sheer throughput on the platform will be higher. India is a great market to start and build a sizable audience base.

    In India, our go-to-market strategy for ONMO is leveraging performance marketing and brand marketing. We have an exclusive distribution partnership with short-form video platform Chingari to access its 100 million plus growing install base. We have an exclusive deal with them as OnMobile Global has invested in Chingari and their gaming channel. This will give us access to 50 million users which is a big number.

    The company launched their first brand campaign ‘Just Beat It’ in April conceptualised by Lowe Lintas Bangalore. The film was supported by an influencer-led campaign featuring Tanmay Bhat, Neha Dhupia and Radhika Madan who challenged casual gamers to play on the ONMO platform and beat the records set by them on ONMO’s most popular games.

  • Viacom18 takes criminal action against digital piracy

    Viacom18 takes criminal action against digital piracy

    Mumbai: Viacom18 Media is working with Maharashtra Cyber Crime Cell, Mumbai to fight against digital piracy and infringing usage of content.

    The Cyber Crime Cell arrested Subhanjan Kayet for his involvement in the pirated websites/platform named Thop TV. He was accused for the development of software, technical manipulation, illegal streaming and telecasting of the contents from Viacom18’s channels and its OTT platform Voot.

    On 23 May, Kayet was sentenced by Esplanade Court to five days of police custody after considering the severity of the offence and upon the request of the counsel appearing for the state.

    The Maharashtra Cyber Crime Cell has frozen his bank account in which he purportedly received the illegal proceeds of his unlawful activities. He was prolonging his arrest for the last few months after his bail applications were rejected by the courts in Kolkata and Mumbai.
    “Special anti-piracy unit MIPCU (Maharashtra Intellectual property Crime Unit) arrested accused Subhanjan Samiran Kayet from Gobardanaga Harbra, 24 Paragana, West Bengal on 22nd May 2022 as he appears to be the lead developer of the THOP TV app,” said Superintendent of Police Maharashtra Cyber Mumbai Sanjay Shintre. “We have sufficient evidence regarding this.”

    “We are thankful to Maharashtra Cyber for continuing this action against piracy,” said a spokesperson from Viacom18. “It is important to make the message clear that operating or abetting a business of infringement is a serious offence which affects the creative community at large. The perpetrators will be found and brought before law.”
    In the recent past, the efforts of Viacom18 together with Maharashtra Cyber Crime Cell had led to the arrest of the founder and CEO of Thop TV.

    “Viacom18 has always been at the forefront in addressing and curbing piracy of their content and channels,” said the statement. “Viacom18 and the TV18 network will continue to fight market threats associated with piracy and will protect their channel’s content using all legal methods available.”

  • OneOTT Intertainment CEO Yugal Kishore Sharma moves on

    OneOTT Intertainment CEO Yugal Kishore Sharma moves on

    Mumbai: OneOTT Intertainment (OIL) chief executive officer Yugal Kishore Sharma has chosen to move on after a successful six-year assignment. OneOTT Intertainment is the broadband subsidiary of Nxtdigital.

    Sharma will pursue new ventures in the field of sports and e-sports and nurture Hindustan FC, a football club he has been associated with for several years, said the statement. 

    Sharma has led and built up the broadband business of the media group in India’s fourth-largest private ISP (internet service provider) with over one million subscribers. A telecom industry veteran, Sharma has been instrumental in driving OneOTT Intertainment and building up the various verticals, especially the innovative and highly successful ISP strategic partnership aggregator model.

    “Yugal has played a pivotal role in the significant growth of OIL through his radical thinking, innovative strategies and evolving business models over the years,” said OneOTT Intertainment chairman AK Das. “Today, OIL is a highly respected brand across 150 cities and towns with a very high quality of service, with customer centricity at its core. Much of that credit is attributed to Yugal’s leadership from the front, propelling ONE Broadband into India’s top four private ISPs. We take this opportunity to thank him for his contribution to the growth of the company and wish him all the very best as he pursues his new ventures.”

  • Nxtdigital, Thaicom ink strategic partnership to deploy satellite broadband services in India

    Nxtdigital, Thaicom ink strategic partnership to deploy satellite broadband services in India

    Mumbai: Nxtdigital and Thaicom have signed a deal to form a strategic partnership to enter broadband-over-satellite (BoS) market and related services in India.

    The two companies have signed a binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

    The partnership includes deployment of BoS systems on India-focused capacity, which could be enhanced to provide future additional capacity on a state-of-art software define high throughput satellite; augmenting the existing IPSTAR-1 which is the first broadband satellite in the world and operational over India for several years.

    Thaicom and Nxtdigital will look to provide BoS services immediately in IPSTAR-1 focusing mainly on the rural footprint in India, comprising 60 per cent of Nxtdigital customers through the only HITS (headend-in-the-sky) platform in India.

    “The BoS service will focus on providing cost-effective and quality broadband and will give a tremendous boost to delivering education, information, entertainment, health and other services to these markets,” said the statement.

    The details of partnership elements are being discussed and will be documented in definitive agreements between Thaicom and Nxtdigital.

    “We are delighted to ink this MoU with Nxtdigital, which is easily one of the best digital platforms groups in India,” said Thaicom Public Company chief executive officer Patompob Suwansiri. “With our global satellite experience spanning nearly three decades and Nxtdigital’s distribution expertise, vast footprint and broadband penetration – we believe that together, we are best suited to delivering broadband over satellite and related services to India, not just at a high level of quality of service, but also cost-effectively. Our engagement and investments reflect our commitment to India, where we have had a presence since 2002, offering broadband over satellite since then.”

    “We have always taken our commitment to the government’s digital India mission very seriously,” said Nxtdigital managing director and CEO Vynsley Fernandes. “With HITS, we now cover over 4,500 pin codes across India with a significant presence in not just rural India but also areas where terrain poses challenges to connectivity. Through this engagement with Thaicom, a global leader in satellite technology, we will look to facilitate digital inclusion across education, healthcare, information & entertainment – by extending satellite-based broadband connectivity and services to our customers there and also to the underserved and other poorly connected markets.”

    The two companies will also develop and offer digital solutions for the government that Thaicom has already developed and deployed elsewhere in the world including satellite artificial intelligence solutions comprising space-based data technologies for agriculture, disaster relief & natural resource management public WIFI systems and drones for augmenting rural digital solutions.

    “With India’s significant dependence on agriculture and the incumbent challenges of crop management – the satellite-based AI will help by providing mission-critical data on tap,” said the statement.

    Both companies will also set up a Centre for Excellence to develop new satellite and related digital-based technologies through artificial intelligence and analytics – leveraging deep-tech research and development.

  • Indian content market is maturing with every story: Tanya Bami

    Indian content market is maturing with every story: Tanya Bami

    Mumbai: Netflix is ramping up its original series slate for 2022. Its upcoming original shows include Scoop helmed by Hansal Mehta about the Jyotirmay Dey (J Dey) murder case, Guns and Gulaabs led by the duo Raj and Dk, CAT starring Randeep Hooda and directed by Balwinder Singh Janjua and Heeramandi led by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. “The Indian content market is maturing with every story,” Netflix India series head Tanya Bami tells Indiantelevision.com. “Creators, writers and directors are bringing forward their best work on OTT.”

    The OTT platform has ordered the second seasons of Jamtara, Masaba Masaba, The Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives. It has recently released shows such as The Fame Game starring Madhuri Dixit, Mai: A Mother’s Rage featuring Sakshi Tanwar, Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein and Kapil Sharma’s comedy special I’m Not Done Yet. “We’ve built out a really dynamic content slate title by title over the last four months, says Bami. “The last four months have seen eight shows launched by Netflix. The intensity at which we’re putting out content is fairly unmatched in the Indian landscape. Netflix is going to double the excitement over the next two years.”  

    Cursoring through Netflix India originals on Wikipedia, the company has put out an impressive range of content. It has intriguing docu-series such as Bad Boy Billionaires: India and House of Secrets: The Burari Deaths, it offers riveting drama series like Delhi Crime and Call My Agent: Bollywood, it has fun unscripted series such as Indian Matchmaking and The Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives and ambitious original films such as Minnal Murali and Jagame Thandhiram. It has yet to build any lasting franchises yet the OTT giant continues its bold approach to creating content.

    “What’s unique about us is that we tell very distinct stories with a lot of passion,” says Bami. “The ideas and concepts stick with us members. When you remember a story after watching it, I think that’s the true victory of the storyteller. There’s also a cinematic quality that we bring that is akin to the big screen experience in your living room. We offer a variety of genres, moods, creators and there’s a different creative experience with every title.”

    Netflix launched 28 India originals in 2021 including 15 films, eight series, five non-fiction titles, 11 genres, seven languages and eight formats. Moreover, it has worked with more than 70 different production houses till date with 70 per cent of them working on more than two projects for Netflix. Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos recently at the Economic Times Global Business Summit said that “India is a land of a billion stories. The opportunity is so large and the storytelling appetite is so big. As we get the storytelling right, the rest will fall into place.”

    Global streamers have been criticised for playing the volume game in local markets and missing out on the essential ingredient that is quality, especially, compared to western shows. Many believe this is why Indian original shows have not traversed the world much like a Money Heist, Squid Game or Dark.

    “To not recognise the contribution made by our creators at a global level and at an India level would be a little bit unfair as there are such amazing stories coming out whether it is one Netflix or any competing platform,” says Bami. “The world is recognising India’s content. Delhi Crime has won an International Emmy award. Our series like The Fame Game and Sacred Games are watched across 15-20 countries outside India. It’s time to be proud of Indian content,” she added.

    Elaborating on Netflix India’s content strategy, Bami states, “The idea is to capture a diverse audience segment because we feel everybody wants to watch something different. Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein is about the gender dynamic being subverted in the hinterlands (where we assume men have the power), Aranyak delves into Indian folklore, the moment when Kapil Sharma speaks about his father in his stand-up special, I’m Not Done Yet was memorable for audiences.

    Adding further, she says, “Like Ted (Sarandos) said recently, ‘India is a land of a billion stories’, a billion stories that are untold. We want to be a part of the zeitgeist and capture the imagination of audiences and that comes by working very closely with dynamic minds who’ve had varied experiences of this culture. They have experienced this country which they put into their stories that they create for us.”

    Netflix is largely perceived as a metro brand due to its high concept shows and anthology series. It is ready to shed that brand image and dive deeper into the Indian market. “Our show Mai: A Mother’s Rage is set in Lucknow and features actor Saakshi Tanwar who is popular with the broader TV audience. That is our way to open up a backdrop and milieu and unlock that audience segment for Netflix,” explains Bami.

    “We’re also excited to work with South creators and content which is actively under development as we look to penetrate the south market,” notes Bami. “We’ve had early successes with shows like Navrasa, Paava Kadhaigal, Minnal Murali and have so much more lined-up.”

    “Nothing is more important to us than to succeed in India and we realise that we have to go deeper within. We must reach out to a more diverse audience set,” concludes Bami.

  • ViewLift elevates Shraddha Pednekar to CXO; Sujith Vellat to CTO

    ViewLift elevates Shraddha Pednekar to CXO; Sujith Vellat to CTO

    Mumbai: US based end-to-end streaming and OTT (over-the-top) solutions provider ViewLift has announced the elevation of Shraddha Pednekar to CXO (chief experience officer) and Sujith Vellat to CTO (chief technology officer).

    The announcement comes as ViewLift, an enabler of regional focused OTT platforms like Hoichoi, Oho Gujarati, Kachaa Lannka, looks to further expand its operations in India and the subcontinent.

    “The talent that ViewLift is looking to recruit in India, will support increasing the B2B presence on separate OTT platforms,” said the statement. “Those additional teams will be tasked with developing ViewLift’s long-term capabilities, with its strong leadership at the helm.”

    “Having experience of operating in the Indian and global markets, both Shraddha and Sujith will be instrumental for ViewLift as we continue with our market expansion,” said ViewLift co-founder and president Manik Bambha. “Since Shraddha and Sujith joined the team, we have seen the direct impact of their dedication to our customers and to improving our product offerings constantly. We have exceptional talent in these two, and we are eager to watch them flourish in their new roles.”

    Shraddha Pednekar will be responsible for global project delivery and client engagement and satisfaction, as well as help to strengthen ViewLift’s end-to-end product development based on ongoing client experience.

    As CTO at ViewLift, Vellat will be responsible for guiding the continued development and innovation of the company’s end-to-end streaming and OTT platform, enabling customers with advanced monetization, real-time analytics, growth tools and significantly reduced time to market.

    ViewLift has a presence in multiple locations across the US, Europe and India. Its clientele is spread across media and entertainment, sports and broadcasting.