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Tag: Eros Now

  • Eros Now partners with ROKKI to offer AirAsia WiFi users best of Indian entertainment and discounted subscription plan vouchers

    Eros Now partners with ROKKI to offer AirAsia WiFi users best of Indian entertainment and discounted subscription plan vouchers

    MUMBAI: Eros Now, a premier Indian OTT entertainment platform with more than 154 million registered users, today announced its partnership with ROKKI, AirAsia’s in-flight WiFi service provider. The partnership will provide access to the on-demand platform’s programming using guests’ own devices while on board WiFi-enabled AirAsia flights. The alliance aims at upping the entertainment quotient by enhancing passengers in-flight experience through access to the vast content library of Eros Now.

    The need to stay online and engaged to digital devices has become a way of life for people across the globe. Eros Now’s partnership with ROKKI addresses this by providing access to preferred content in the air aimed at enhancing the travel experience by offering a seamless viewing experience.

    Powered by ROKKI, AirAsia WiFi will host a variety of Eros Now’s compelling content that guests can watch for free. It will also host a microsite that will enable guests to discover more of the OTT platform’s offerings and purchase discounted subscription plan vouchers on board. The voucher offers one-month access to the OTT platform’s premium content that boasts over 12,000 Bollywood movies, original shows, Quickies, music and other content available on the digital video streaming platform.

    Commenting on the partnership, Rishika Lulla Singh, CEO, Eros Digital, said “On-the-go consumers are always on the lookout for interesting content. Our intent has always been to deliver the best of services to meet end users’ demands and expectations. By partnering with ROKKI, AirAsia’s in-flight WiFi provider, we plan to attract the in-flight consumers by offering Eros Now’s vast collection of Bollywood movies which remains to be a popular choice apart from Originals, Quickies and more.”

    Sargunan Seenivasan, Head of ROKKI, said, “In line with ROKKI’s continuous efforts to transform the inflight experience through our key offerings – entertainment, connectivity, and e-commerce – our partnership with Eros Now is another step towards creating a dynamic and engaging experience through content-driven commerce. Being able to enjoy Eros Now’s curated content on board and subsequently purchase subscription vouchers takes the experience from inflight to onground seamlessly.”

    Eros Now taps the on-the-go audience and enhances the inflight experience for guests travelling on WiFi-enabled AirAsia flights powered by ROKKI.

  • Unravelling The Digital Video Consumer-Looking Through The Viewer Lens

    Unravelling The Digital Video Consumer-Looking Through The Viewer Lens

    MUMBAI: Eros Now, a premier Indian OTT entertainment platform with more than 155 million registered users and KPMG in India, a multinational professional services network, showcased an in-depth report on India’s OTT market at FICCI FAST TRACK INDIA 2019 in Mumbai. The study projects that India will have more than 500 million online video subscribers by FY 2023 making it the second biggest market in the world only after China. As per the study, 87% of users in India consume their content on mobile phones and spend an average time of about 70 minutes per day on OTT platforms. 

    The varied and innovative offerings blended with superlative services will let OTT platforms cater to the growing market. Eros Now, which is known for its extensive movie library apart from offering originals, digital movie premieres and short-format content ‘Quickie’, has been a leading OTT platform satiating increasing consumer demands across device forms like Smart TVs, tabs and so on.

    The KPMG and Eros Now study highlights interesting facets for the Indian OTT market:

    Love for films: Indians continue to love their movies and movie related content; 30% of the respondents prefer watching movies on OTT platforms.

    Original content as a differentiator – Original and exclusive Indian content is one of the biggest drivers in the OTT space. Quality Indian narratives are traveling beyond the South Asian audiences around the world. The massive base of digital content consumers prefers new stories that this country must tell.

    Online video transcending geographies – Distribution ecosystem is set to become stronger. Role of value chain partners like OEM, DTH, ISPs and Telcos is likely to grow as creators look at multiple avenues to reach the end consumer.

    Innovations in pricing to boost subscriptions – New user profiles indicate that companies have to focus on smaller towns and rural markets as a sustainable business model would need to be anchored by small town viewers and eventually subscribers.

    Fostering multi-format consumption and engagement – Short-format video content, movie premieres, documentaries, original music and other formats enable OTT players to engage diverse sets of online video consumers. Today, audiences look forward to enjoying varied content formats on digital platforms.

    In order to cater to consumer demands, Eros Now plans to invest to create new original shows for their platform. It has also introduced ‘TV Se Pehle’, wherein movies premiere on the platform prior to their satellite broadcast and started to offer original short-format content. Soon, Eros Now plans to launch over 50 short form original series under its ‘Eros Now Quickies' category. The premium Indian OTT player’s several strategic brand associations has enabled the app to be available in smaller towns of the country and in over 135 countries across the globe.

    Commenting on the key trends and insights Rishika Lulla Singh, Chief Executive Officer, Eros Digital, said, “India is one of the fastest growing entertainment and media market globally and is expected to keep that momentum. As data and digital infrastructure has become exceedingly accessible even in small cities of India, the market for OTT has widened enormously. At Eros Now, we strive to constantly engage the existing consumers and expand our reach by offering new and innovative services.”

    Girish Menon, Partner & Head Media & Entertainment, KPMG in India, said, “The online video consumer in India has evolved in a significant way in the last couple of years. With consumption now going mass and viewers spending close to 8.5 hours a week on online video, we see a homogenous pattern of consumption emerging cutting across age groups, income levels and professions. Our report also touches upon the future of this consumption evolution, and how online video could potentially disrupt traditional distribution in the coming years. This represents a large opportunity for platforms to tap into the ever-expanding universe of digitally connected Indians”

    The increasing internet penetration and access to digital infrastructure across India make it an important market for the OTT industry. The KPMG report is a testament that content innovation, services across device forms and partnerships has established Eros Now as a key player and will further strengthen its position in the growing market.

  • Eros Digital COO Ali Hussein on international partnerships for distribution & subscription

    Eros Digital COO Ali Hussein on international partnerships for distribution & subscription

    MUMBAI: As distribution plays a crucial role along with content for the business of over-the-top (OTT) platforms, Eros Now is betting big on partnerships in international markets to expand its reach in international markets. After recently striking deals with Vodafone Qatar and China’s WASU Media, the streaming player is also looking at such other partnerships. Although India definitely remains a large focus of the business, the company is trying to strengthen international distribution also.

    Talking to Indiantelevison.com, Eros Digital chief operating officer Ali Hussein spoke about the objective of the partnerships. He emphasised on the importance of two of the partnerships as both the countries are very important for the company.

    “We did an announcement for WASU in China which was our second partnership there. So, I don’t think any Indian OTTs really have any distribution partnership in China where we already have two. Moreover, China is doing a lot of investment in terms of market development on how to increase the further distribution of Indian programming or Indian content around the world. China is obviously a big market in terms of theatrical releases also and we are investing lots of resources trying to improve our digital distribution in China,” he commented.

    Talking about the Vodafone Qatar partnership, he noted that the Middle East is a focus area for the company. The company would try to penetrate better in the UAE and now in Qatar with the partnership along with Bahrain and some of the other countries.

    Hussein added that each market is unique in itself when it comes to content strategy thus requiring multiple strategies based on the market with localised approach like dubbing, subtitling, etc. Along with that, marketing is another area to get subscribers in conjunction with its partners also.

    Interestingly, these markets have two kinds of audience as Hussein shared. The Indian audience and South Asian audience  are watching a lot of South Asian content but it is some of the local audience watching Bollywood films. He also added that each market has a very different objective with different understanding of the audience behaviour. According to him, curating customer journeys, marketing the product and localisation of the product are also important factors.

    “Direct subscription we are doing anyway. This kind of telco partnership helps because they have the billing relationship with consumers. They are very accurate in customer profiling. As Telcos are more accurate in what is the type of customers looking to watch what kind of content, customer targeting is better done through these partnerships. So, I think both these efforts continue to go ahead hand in hand. We don’t segregate, it’s just different means of how do you acquire customers,” he commented.

    A recent KPMG report noted that telco partnerships contributed 30-35 per cent to the overall subscription revenues of OTT platforms in FY19. The report also added that although a majority of the subscription revenues are expected to come from direct subscriptions, the revenue from telco partnerships is also expected to achieve a robust growth, although slower as compared to direct subscriptions.

    “Our maximum growth actually has been coming from beyond the top eight cities. Some of our originals are also garnering a large amount of viewership from beyond the top six or eight cities. Actually, the number from metros is quite high but if you look at the growth percentage from tier-II, tier-III cities, that has been maximum for us,” Hussein commented on the subscriber growth of the platform.

    “Although user engagement also has a lot to do with the quality of network and quality of services, our time spent in terms of retention has gone north up of 75 minutes for most active users. A lot of original launches contribute to longer sessions. In general, we have seen a significant increase in time spent. For long-form episodic content, the company is trying to hit one original a month in the second half of the year,” he added.

    The company is now looking at the interactive video area. Other key areas the company is focusing on are Eros Now Quickies and short films.

  • Eros International reports lower numbers for Q1 2019

    Eros International reports lower numbers for Q1 2019

    BENGALURU: Indian film and media company Eros International Media Ltd (Eros) reported a 15.9 percent decline in consolidated net sales/income from operations (Op Rev) for the quarter ended 30 June 2019 (Q1 2020, quarter or period under review) as compared to the corresponding year ago quarter Q1 2019 (y-o-y). Eros reported consolidated Op Rev of Rs 183.52 crore and Rs 217.93 for Q1 2020 and Q1 2019 respectively. The company’s consolidated simple operating EBITDA fell 64.7 percent to Rs 32.91 crore (17.9 percent of Op Rev) in Q1 2020 from Rs 93.33 crore (42.8 percent of Op Rev) in Q1 2019. Consolidated Profit after tax (PAT) during the quarter under review declined 54.9 percent y-o-y to Rs 27.05 crore from Rs 59.95 crore. Total comprehensive income or TCI declined 77.9 percent y-o-y to Rs 22.3 crore from Rs 100.91 crore in Q1 2019.

    Eros consolidated Total Expenditure in Q1 2020 increased 16.8 percent y-o-y to Rs 170.99 crore from Rs 146.45 crore. Consolidated Films rights costs including amortisation costs declined 25.8 percent y-o-y to Rs 66.93 crore in Q1 2020 from Rs 90.15 crore. Consolidated Employee Benefits Expense in Q1 2020 declined 19.8 percent y-o-y to Rs 10.86 crore from Rs 13.54 crore. Consolidated net finance costs declined 9.3 percent y-o-y to Rs 17.68 crore from Rs 19.50 crore. Consolidated Other expenses for the period under review more than tripled (increased 264.5 percent) y-o-y to Rs 69.81 crore from Rs 19.15 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter.

    It must be noted that this report is purely a numbers report based only on the company’s consolidated financial results.

    The last traded price of Eros International Media Ltd on the NSE was Rs 9.50 per equity share of face value of Rs 10 each on 12 August 2019. The 52 week high/low prices were Rs 133.50/Rs 9.50.

  • Eros Now partners with The Mobile Wallet

    Eros Now partners with The Mobile Wallet

    MUMBAI: Eros Now, the cutting-edge digital over-the-top (OTT) South Asian entertainment platform owned by Eros International Plc (NYSE: EROS) (“Eros” or the “Company”), a Global Indian Entertainment Company, today announced its partnership with TMW Fintech Pvt Ltd’s ‘The Mobile Wallet’ – India’s fast-growing financial technology service that makes daily transactions easy as users never have to reach for their physical wallets. As part of the partnership, The Mobile Wallet users can take advantage of a special offer and enjoy Eros Now’s massive entertainment library which consists of over 12,000 movie titles, original series, music videos, short form content (Eros Now Quickie) and more.

    Eros Now is the first and only online video streaming platform that can be accessed in the newly introduced ‘Entertainment’ tab of ‘The Mobile Wallet’, a doorway to entertainment for over 2.5 million active users of the digital wallet.

    Speaking on the partnership, Rishika Lulla Singh, Chief Executive Officer, Eros Digital, said, “The Fintech industry has witnessed immense growth in India and this partnership solidifies the continual innovation of both Eros Now and The Mobile Wallet to enhance user experience. The collaboration will enable us to cater to the potential online video streaming audience by offering them a wide array of entertainment content to choose from. The newly curated ‘Entertainment’ tab featuring Eros Now also adds a new dimension to the unique offerings of The Mobile Wallet and promises to further engage its users.”

    Mr. Vinay Kalantri, Founder & Managing Director, TMW Fintech Pvt Ltd, said, “The blend of financial solution with entertainment strengthens our unique offerings portfolio. The additional engagement that this partnership will drive also promises the growth of technological infrastructure. We are glad to partner with Eros Now and introduce an ‘Entertainment’ category.”

  • Eros Now original series – ‘Modi: Journey Of A Common Man’ releases today

    Eros Now original series – ‘Modi: Journey Of A Common Man’ releases today

    MUMBAI: Eros Now, a cutting-edge digital over-the-top (OTT) South Asian entertainment platform owned by Eros International PLC (NYSE:EROS), a leading global company in the Indian film entertainment industry, today (April 3, 2019) announces the release of ‘Modi: Journey Of A Common Man’. The 10 part original series is based on Narendra Modi’s life starting at the age of 12 and traverses through his youth to becoming the Prime Minister of India.

    A common man who went on to become a national leader is looked upon by billions of people and witnessing his journey on the screen promises to be a fascinating experience. ‘Modi: Journey Of A Common Man’ is directed by Bollywood filmmaker Umesh Shukla and written by Mihir Bhuta and Radhika Anand. The different phases of Modi’s life will be depicted by actors Faisal Khan, Ashish Sharma and Mahesh Thakur.

    Each episode of the series ranges between 35 to 40 minutes highlighting the many significant events and incidents that opened unexpected paths for a common man and led him to becoming the man he is today. The Eros Now original series is Produced by Benchmark Pictures led by Umesh Shukla and Ashish Wagh.

    Commenting on the release, Ridhima Lulla, Chief Content Officer, Eros Group said, “It is a privilege for all of us at Eros to release one of the most inspiring and anticipated original series for our global audience. The story of Modi: Journey Of A Common Man is significant and entertaining. Eros has always believed in connecting with the masses and telling them the stories that matter. Our attempt through this biopic is to tell the story of his struggle, ambition, intensity and success and how it not only inspires many but is one of the factors of his mass appeal. We at Eros are all excited and look forward to audiences’ response”.

     When asked Umesh Shukla, he said, “It has been a pleasure making this original series based on Prime Minister Modi who has bought in commendable changes in India. It’s an honour to present many unheard and unseen facets of Narendra Modi’s life to the audience and I am sure they will love and enjoy watching the original series.”

  • Eros Now inks deal with Veriown Global to bring digital entertainment, energy to rural India

    Eros Now inks deal with Veriown Global to bring digital entertainment, energy to rural India

    MUMBAI: Eros Now, the cutting-edge digital over-the-top (OTT) South Asian entertainment platform owned by Eros International Plc (NYSE:EROS) (“Eros”), a Global Indian Entertainment Company, today announced it entered into a partnership with Veriown. Through this alliance, Eros Now powers Films, Originals and other content on ‘The Connect’ a product designed and conceptualized by Veriown.

    Over 300 million people in rural India are currently living in the dark deprived of electricity, entertainment and educational content. Access to reliable energy sources plays a key role in making available additional services that consumers from rural India are seeking. In-line with the Government’s Saubhagya plan to bring electricity to all households and provide additional benefits in the form of entertainment, ‘The Connect’ will offer ‘light, learning and fun – all in one powered by the Sun!’  The initiative will cut the air pollution and expense for fuel to generate electricity while screening highly entertaining content.

    Through internet-powered solar devices, rural Indians will have access to reliable energy and a digital entertainment offering of the largest movie library, original shows, short-format content, originals, music and much more brought exclusively to them by Eros Now.  The alliance also promises to make a social impact and create inclusion for the large population which requires access to the 4E’s – Entertainment, Energy, Education and E-Commerce.

    Commenting on the announcement, Rishika Lulla Singh, Chief Executive Officer, Eros Digital, said, “Eros Now has always been a pioneer in carving new dimensions to enhance its audiences’ lifestyle. ‘The Connect’ aims to improve lives by not only providing electricity but also a wide range of digital content for entertainment. This technological advancement & innovative solution is a market first.  It will also help in building a digital ecosystem by fulfilling the demand for entertainment in remote villages of rural India in line with our promise of penetrating deeper in tier 3 & 4 markets. The service acts as a sense of safety and security during the night and works towards enhancing social status by giving consumers access to entertainment and educational content.”

    “Since its inception, Veriown has focused on improving the lives of those with the least access by bringing them into the digital economy through our Connect.  By partnering with EROS NOW, we expand on our mission to bring the 4Es, Energy, Education, Entertainment and E-Commerce to rural India.  We believe the partnership will bring substantial engagement with our customers and open new markets for both our companies.” Says, Wael Aburida, CEO, Veriown Global Inc.

    The pilot phase for this initiative is expected to begin Q2 2019 and will see the markets of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan benefitting from clean, affordable and reliable electricity. Soon the product will also be made available to other remote villages across India and overseas.

  • Apple join hands with Eros Now for content distribution

    Apple join hands with Eros Now for content distribution

    MUMBAI: Apple Inc has announced a distribution partnership with over-the-top (OTT) streaming platform, Eros Now– owned by Eros International Plc.

    The Cupertino-headquartered firm, which launched its new Apple TV Plus services on Monday, will showcase Eros Now content on various devices, including iPhones, iPads, Macs and Apple TV.

    Eros International chairman Kishore Lulla said, “Apple has a mammoth distribution network and is looking to consolidate its content play. This is a win-win situation for both of us."

    As part of the deal, Eros Now will be available across Apple devices and users can subscribe as part of bundled as well as a-la-carte service. Also, it is looking at an RPU (revenue per user) of $1-4 per month from countries such as Saudi Arabia, UAE, Africa, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Europe, Canada, and the US.

    The deal will also help to get the benefit of a share in the subscription revenues. “While monetisation will evolve over time, we expect average revenue per user (ARPU) between $1 and $4 depending on market and plans,” Lulla said. 

    Eros Now has also made a recent investment of $70 million over 50 shows for Eros Now Quickie, which features short, on-the-go, snackable content. 

    In the past, the OTT platform has partnered with several companies such as Virgin Media and netgem.tv for global distribution. 

  • Eros Now to release PM Narendra Modi’s biopic

    Eros Now to release PM Narendra Modi’s biopic

    MUMBAI: Eros Now, the OTT platform, has announced a biopic on India’s PM, Narendra Modi, produced by Benchmark Pictures, led by Umesh Shukla and Ashish Wagh. Titled Modi, the Eros Now original series showcases the eventful life of the inspiring and influential leader. The series is set to release in April 2019.

    The 10-part original series on Eros Now directed by Shukla captures different phases of Modi’s life. The original series is written by MihirBhuta and Radhika Anand and each episode ranges between 35 to 40 minutes highlighting many incidents that made him devote his life to the service of the country.

    Eros Group CCO Ridhima Lulla said, “Eros has always believed in connecting with the masses and telling them the stories that matter. ‘Modi’ is one of our really exciting projects. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is undoubtedly a leader par excellence and someone who has inspired many and changed the way world looks at India. Our attempt through this biopic is to tell the story of his struggle, ambition, intensity and success and how it not only inspires many but is one of the factors of his mass appeal. We are certain that the audience will love to watch the different facets of their enigmatic leader.” 

    The story talks about Narendra Modi who was born to a family of grocers (who owned a tea stall) in Vadnagar, Mehsana district, Bombay state (present-day Gujarat) and is the third of six children of DamodardasMulchand Modi and Hiraben Modi. He was a diligent and resourceful student who discovered himself better at a young age by travelling across the country. His extremely humble background helped him connect with the masses and the biopic is the ultimate gateway to witness the life of a self-made man. Shot in real locations of Gujarat, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Delhi and Kashmir, the biopic captures the several highs and lows of the dynamic leader of new India.

    Shukla further adds, “Prime Minister Modi’s personality enthrals young and old alike. His sense of humour, spirituality and love for technology makes him a unique leader. It was lovely to take on a project which came with a responsibility to narrate the life of the leader of new India and I am sure each episode of the 10-part original series will be a revelation for the audiences. His growing-up years, brave decisions and roles at different phases of life makes for an incredible story.”

  • Eros Now partners with netgem.tv, further consolidating its leading position in Global Markets

    Eros Now partners with netgem.tv, further consolidating its leading position in Global Markets

    MUMBAI: Eros International PLC (NYSE:EROS) (“Eros”), a leading global company in the Indian film entertainment industry, announced today that Eros Now, its cutting-edge digital over-the-top (OTT) South Asian entertainment platform has partnered with netgem.tv, the fast-growing TV service offered in the UK which is delivering the best customer TV experience with a global presence. netgem.tv simplify the access to entertainment using an immersive User Interface allowing enhanced content discovery, whether it is from a remote control, a simple app on phone, or through voice control for the Connected Home.

    Eros Now, the premium Indian OTT player, is on a spree of expanding its global reach to deliver quality content and with this partnership, it will be further spreading its presence in countries such as France, Ireland, Australia, Switzerland, Gibraltar and many more, where netgem.tv is providing its services. Eros Now is the only South Asian OTT platform available on netgem.tv for all Bollywood lovers residing abroad.

    Commenting on the partnership, Rishika Lulla Singh, CEO – Eros Digital said, “Eros Now and netgem.tv share a similar focus and aim at providing user friendly experience to consumers. Hence, it is a win-win partnership with netgem.tv as through this partnership Eros Now looks at expanding its global presence and further enhance consumer experience. Our aim remains to deliver quality content and user delight to our global audience and this partnership strengthens our core promise”.

    Sylvain Thevenot, Managing Director of netgem.tv said “This partnership is great news for netgem.tv and Eros Now. Both brands share a common goal of providing the best content with a flawless consumer experience. At netgem.tv, we are excited to be taking our transformative proposition of personalised, on-demand and online entertainment to a wider audience. With the fantastic Eros Now content, associated with our experience that can be enjoyed anywhere, any time, we are confident that this is another step ahead to offer the most comprehensive TV proposition in the UK and other markets”

    Eros Now currently holds 142 million registered users and with similar partnerships, aims at growing their user base on a global scale.