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Tag: Zee5

  • ZEE5 india’s Tarun Katial to speak at 24th paley international council summit

    ZEE5 india’s Tarun Katial to speak at 24th paley international council summit

    MUMBAI: ZEE5 India CEO Tarun Katial will become the first Indian CEO from the OTT industry to speak at the 24th Paley International Council Summit. The Paley Center for Media’s 24th Paley International Council Summit: Agility in Media: Navigating the Global Market will be held in New York City on November 14-15, 2019. The Paley International Council Summit, an exclusive, invitation only member ship community often referred to as the “Davos of Media”, brings together global leaders and CEOs of the world’s most important media companies, to advance the exchange of ideas and to foster a sense of community. The Summit was first held in 1995 in Italy, and over the years, has been held in China, South Africa, Germany, Austria, India, Monaco, Spain, France, Turkey, Mexico, and the United Kingdom.

    Tarun will be a part of the panel, ‘Vertical Integration’ on Nov 15th along with other eminent industry leaders such as Dexter Goei, CEO, Altice USA and Dana Strong, President, Consumer Services, Comcast Cable. The panel will be moderated by Adam Bird, Senior Partner from McKinsey & Company. Within Vertical Integration, they will be seen discussing which approach will win in this brave new world of content creation and distribution platforms? As companies across all sectors of media, tech and business are addressing this challenge in a variety of surprising ways.

    ZEE5 is India’s largest ConTech brand, delighting Indian audiences through the magnitude of content produced in 12 languages and delivering a hyper-personalised experience for Segment of ONE at scale. In 2019 itself, ZEE5 has rolled out around 25 original shows across genres, and the platform is committed to launching 72+ shows by March 2020. It has crossed 70 million+ downloads since launch on the Play Store and had 9 million DAUs as of September 2019.

    The Paley Center for Media, with locations in New York and Los Angeles, leads the discussion about the cultural, creative, and social significance of television, radio, and emerging platforms for the professional community and media-interested public. Drawing upon its curators, collection, and relationships with the media community, The Paley Center for Media examines the intersections between media and society.

  • Strong Netflix growth underlines OTT growth potential in India

    Strong Netflix growth underlines OTT growth potential in India

    MUMBAI: Netflix India has just posted its earnings with the registrar of companies and reportedly, the video streaming giant has grown more than 700 per cent in the past 12 months.

    While the company doesn’t share these details publicly, an ET Tech report, quoting Netflix’s annual filing, says that the Indian-arm of American video streaming giant recorded overall revenues of Rs 466.7 crore with a net profit of Rs 5.1 crore. In 2018, the company had a turnover of mere Rs 58 crore with Rs 20 lakh net profit.

    No doubt, Netflix has upped its game in India by investing in expanding local content, a high-stakes marketing blitzkrieg and the launch of mobile-only plans starting at as low as Rs 199 per month, Netflix’s lowest subscription plan anywhere in the world. The strong growth posted by Reed Hastings-owned company, however, only underlines the tremendous growth potential for OTT platforms in the Indian market.

    As per EY and FIICI 2019 report – ‘A Billion Screens of Opportunity,’ the OTT sector in India grew by a whopping 59 per cent in FY2019, growing from Rs 13.5 billion in 2018 to Rs 17 billion in 2019. The sector is estimated to reach Rs 24 billion by 2021. PwC, in its 2019 annual report – ‘Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2019-2023,’ estimated that the Indian OTT market will grow to Rs 11,976 crore by 2023, growing at a CAGR of 21.8 per cent. During that period, India is also slated to be the eight biggest OTT market overtaking South Korea.

    OTT platform expansion in India is also supported by rising digital penetration and disposable income. In 2018, digital media grew 42 per cent to reach Rs 169 billion. As per the FICCI 2019 report, paid video subscribers grew from around 7 million in 2017 to around 12-15 million in 2018. The report further estimates that India could have 30-35 million paying OTT subscribers (and a further 350+ million subscribers accessing bundled OTT services from telcos) by 2021.

    All these market studies only buttress one point, i.e. there is enough space for over 30 OTT players in India, both home-grown like Zee5 and AltBalaji, as well as global-giants like Netflix, Amazon and Hotstar, to co-exist and grow simultaneously. The same is also reflected in the ever-increasing subscription base of all these platforms.

    While Netflix in India registered near 700 per cent growth, in terms of subscribers, it’s still dwarfed by Hotstar that has upwards of 300 million active monthly users in India. In comparison, both Netflix and Amazon, the two global-giants in video-on-demand industry, together have less than 30 million subscribers in India. Even the home-grown late-entrant to the party, ZEE5, digital-arm of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd's (ZEEL) launched in February 2018, increased its monthly active users from 21.7 million in the first quarter of 2018 to 76.4 million in the first quarter of 2019.

    It’s pertinent to note that different OTT platforms in India are also adopting different expansion strategies. While global premium content was Netflix’s strength, Amazon expansion was helped by its clubbing of Amazon prime video with its online-retail service. Hotstar banked on sports telecast, whereas ZEE5 launched in 12 different languages, making it a strong player in the expanding regional market.

    To be sure, though, the road-ahead for OTT platforms in India is not all that rosy. For one, no OTT platform has yet cracked the perfect monetisation model. While revenue and subscriber base are, indeed, increasing at a healthy pace, net profits are still meagre. Even Netflix, despite registering a 700 per cent growth rate, has posted a net profit of only Rs 5 crore. Barring Hotstar, that generates revenue through advertising during live sporting events, no other OTT player has successfully integrated advertising on their platforms.

    For now, Netflix India is reaping dividends of being the early-mover in the market, as well as strong global premium content combined with local original shows and movie titles. Last fiscal, Netflix released six original films, five web-series and one docuseries in Hindi. The company has also signed an exclusive output deal with Karan Johar's Dharmatic Entertainment. However, the OTT war for subscribers in India is only heating up. With the foray of global players like Apple TV+ and Disney+, as well as region-specific OTT platforms like Hoichoi and Simply South, the Indian OTT market may see further segmentation, forcing companies to constantly innovate, expand and experiment with a variety of new advertising models.

  • ZEE5 reveals largest content line-up for November

    ZEE5 reveals largest content line-up for November

    MUMBAI: Imagine a destination where you can watch your favourite TV shows, Originals, movies, music and stay updated with breaking news across the country! ZEE5, India’s largest digital video streaming platform is your answer for unmatched and uninterrupted entertainment at your convenience. In its first edition, ZEE5 launched the November content line-up in the attendance of stars across their Originals and TV shows.

    A ZEE5 India spokesperson said, “We understand Indian audiences and how to entertain them like no one else in the industry. With our bespoke November content line-up, we continue to consistently provide a big screen experience for our consumers. From Originals, blockbuster films and tv shows across languages to news, music and much more, we have something that will pique the interest of every viewer.”

    The highlight of the month will be the digital premiere of the blockbuster and much talked about ‘Dream Girl’ starring Ayushmann Khurrana on 21st November.

    The month kick-started with Hindi Originial like Love, Sleep, Repeat; Tamil original series Police Dairy 2.0 and TV show Gokulathil Seethai. This will be followed by Original Bengali series Bhalobashar Shohor season 2 and an exclusive music video ‘Rubaru’ on 11th November 2019; Virgin Bhasskar on 19th November 2019 and Telugu original series Hawala on 21st November. Popular TV shows like Super Mom 2.0 (Tamil), Dil Yeh Ziddi Hai, Movie Masti with Maniesh Paul (Finale) and key live news features like Ayodhya Verdict and Mann Ki Baat LIVE on the platform will also feature in November. The Charlize Theron and James McAvoy starrer Atomic Blonde premieres on 23rd November. The month will end with season 2 of Hindi original ‘Broken but Beautiful’ which will be streaming on the platform on 27th November 2019.

  • I&B Ministry to meet industry leaders to discuss online video content regulation

    I&B Ministry to meet industry leaders to discuss online video content regulation

    Amidst reports of government considering certification/censorship of online video content, the I &B Ministry will hold a second round of consultation next week with industry players, who are determined to oppose any pre-censorship on digital platform.

    The I&B Ministry has invited all  online curated content providers (OCCPs), including Netflix, Amazon and Hotstar, through industry association, the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) for consultation on the issue of regulation of online video content, as per a report in ET.

    The meeting, slated for next week in Chennai, comes close on the heels of a similar consultation in Mumbai last month.

    In October, PTI had quoted union minister for information and broadcasting Prakash Javadekar as saying that there should be some kind of regulation of OTT platforms on the lines of print and electronic media and films.

    “I have sought suggestions on how to deal with this because there are regular feature films coming on OTT — good, bad and ugly. So how to deal with this, who should monitor, who should regulate?. There is no certification body for OTT platforms and likewise news portals also,” Javadekar was quoted as saying.

    Earlier in September, Live mint has reported that I&B Ministry was looking to finalize a model for the certification of online video streaming content soon after Diwali.

    However, any government attempt to regulate content on OTT, is bound to face stiff opposition from the industry, who believe that the existant IT Act 2000 and a voluntary self-regulatory code signed by major OTT players in January this year, are sufficient in dealing with any untoward situation.

    Online vidoe streaming players like Netflix, Hotstar, Jio, Voot, Zee5, Arre, SonyLIV, ALT Balaji and Eros Now have signed a self-censorship code in January that prohibited these platforms from showing certain kinds of content and set up a redressal mechanism for customer complaints.

    The self-regulation code, bars video players from showing content that’s banned by Indian courts, disrespects the national emblem and flag, outrages religious sentiments, promotes terrorism or violence against State and shows children in sexual acts. Amazon, however, is not part of the self-regulatory code signed under the aegis of IAMAI.

    “We should publish a list of all the laws that apply to OCCP platforms so that there is no is perception that OCCPs are not regulated,” Gowree Gokhale, head of Telecom, Media and Technology practice at Nishith Desai Associates, which is part of the consultation process, was quoted as saying by ET.

    However, despite the presence of a self-regulatory code, there have been an array of PILs in court demanding regulation of online video content.

    In May, the Supreme Court had issued a notice to the Centre on an appeal to regulate content on online streaming platforms.

  • ZEE5 reveals content line up for November

    ZEE5 reveals content line up for November

    MUMBAI: India’s leading OTT platform ZEE5 has revealed its content line up for November. From original shows to blockbuster movies across languages, the platform has something for every consumer.

    The highlight of the month will be the digital premiere of the blockbuster and much talked about Dream Girl starring Ayushmann Khurrana on 21 November.

    The month kick-started with Tamil original series Police Dairy 2.0. This will be followed by some of the most anticipated Hindi Originals like Love, Sleep, Repeat starring Raima Sen, Anshuman Malhotra, Priyal Gor, Priya Banerjee, Harshadaa Vijay, Teena Singh and Puneesh Sharma which will be streaming on the 7 November.

    In addition to that, original Bengali series Bhalobashar Shohor season 2 will premiere on 11 November  while Virgin Bhasskar on 19th November 2019 and Telugu original series Hawala on the 21 November.

    The month will end with season 2 of Hindi original Broken but Beautiful which will be streaming on the platform on 27 November.

  • ZEE5 introduces ‘PLAY5’ to help brands engage with customers through innovative and interactive experience

    ZEE5 introduces ‘PLAY5’ to help brands engage with customers through innovative and interactive experience

    Mumbai: ZEE5, India’s fastest growing ConTech brand, has announced the launch of PLAY5 – a unique tool which will let brands engage with their consumers through innovative and interactive experiences. Fourth in line offering from the ZEE5 India’s industry defining ad-suite, it is designed to boost engagement and talk to segment of ONE in a brand safe environment.

    Society is saturated with so much information, and users need an incentive that, among all this vortex, will help to awaken their interest and their desire to read more information about a topic beyond the title of a post or email. In other words, they need something essential that motivates them, that will surprise them and help them to focus all their attention on what they are doing. PLAY5 is tailormade to address these issues and engage with the target consumer in a hyper-personalised way.

    The overall strategy rests on four key pillars that include customised gamification for the brands, branded polls, quizzes and tailored segment within ongoing reality show gamification. This integrated approach results in driving effective engagement and enhance consumer experience, seamless brand integration and visibility, segmentation capabilities to drive further engagement, leveraging brand legacy and advanced user profiling with insightful reports.

    Taranjeet Singh, Chief Revenue Officer and Business Head, ZEE5 India said, “The viewer today is spoilt for choice and we are competing with media formats across the spectrum for their attention. With PLAY5, our endeavour is to engage with the audience through hyper-personalised and interactive formats. We are confident that through this offering, brands will be able to bring alive their offering before the audience rather than just target them. Our other offerings from ad-suite have been extremely well-received by our brand partners and we are confident that PLAY5 will be no different."

    Some of the brands/shows who have successfully used PLAY5 are Colgate, Asian Paints, CEAT, Fortune Premium Kacchi Ghani Pure Mustard Oil for Dadagiri Season 8; Birla White Wallcare Putty, Goodknight, Kinderjoy, Bournvita for Dance India Dance  – Battle of Champions to name a few.

    In 2019 itself, ZEE5 has rolled out around 28 original shows across genres, and the platform is committed to launching 72+ shows by March 2020. It has crossed 70 million+ downloads since launch on the Play Store and recorded 9mn DAUs as of September 2019.

  • ZEE5 plans more show franchises, to invest in direct-to-digital movies

    ZEE5 plans more show franchises, to invest in direct-to-digital movies

    MUMBAI: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd’s (ZEEL) digital arm ZEE5 has built its library on the back of marquee properties and regional content since the time of its entry in the burgeoning over-the-top (OTT) ecosystem. After hitting the audience with a number of popular original shows and direct-to-digital movies, the platform is planning to bring more franchises like Rangbaaz. Moreover, while ZEE5 will continue to invest in buying movies, the platform is also planning to invest more in direct-to-digital movies.

    “Among the few things we have learnt, the first is that we want to bring more franchises. We are making follow-up seasons of some of the bigger shows like Rangbaaz and The Final Call,” ZEE5 India CEO Tarun Katial said in an interaction with Indiantelevision.com.

    “The other thing we have been able to do is an extension of existing TV show library. We did Subhan Allah into Ishq Ajkal, we did Jamai Raja into Jamai 2.0. There’s a lot more treasure in the ZEE library. Also, we have seen a very successful direct-to-digitals. While we will continue to invest in buying movies, this is a getaway to hedge cost and build own IPs. So, we are planning to invest more in direct-to-digital movies,” he added.

    Katial also noted that while the platform started the year with the commitment of creating one of the largest libraries of regional content in the country, ZEE5 consistently created content not only Hindi content but  also content in Tamil, Telugu, Bengali, Marathi, and even in Kannada.

    Katial also mentioned that among all the regional markets, the “film and original crazy” Telugu market has been doing amazingly well. As he shared, the Tamil market is also doing well after Telugu while Kannada has been a very surprising market, one of their fastest-growing markets in the regional sphere.

    While all three of these markets have regional packs, some of the users who first buy into the regional packs in Telugu and Kannada markets upgrade themselves into an all-access pack to consume some of the Hindi originals and Hindi movies. Hence, the regional packs have acted as a good entry point for consumers to sample ZEE5 and then eventually to upgrade into full subscription packages.

    ZEE5 also entered into an unusual content partnership with ALTBalaji in July to co-create original content which are available on both the platforms. Katial said that the partnership has doubled the content output every single month. He also added that it allows them to talk to different taste clusters and build certain amount of velocity behind moving, upgrading consumers from AVOD to SVOD.

    ZEE5 also broadened a lot of technology partners across the world this year. “It has been able to give us a strong collaborative recommendation engine, a consumer data platform that can engage with our consumers real-time and to be able to trigger consumption and as well as trigger updates and subscriptions that we can understand and communicate in their language, need and requirement,” he said.

    Katial also added that they noticed over a period of time that product and user journey needed to be enhanced. Hence, the platform has launched a plethora of new apps on smart TV devices with new UI, new subscription journeys enhancing its ability to onboard new users more easily. In addition to that, he noted that ZEE5 has been able to invest in data sciences this year helping them to add a fair amount of user knowledge to improve decision making, ability to create content and user experiences and more importantly to take long-term decisions on different kind of product cases.

    “The strength of market lies in two things. One is the device-ecosystem which is growing extremely well not only just on the mobile side but also on the smart-TV side. And the other is the growth of the data consumption story and video consumption is the largest part of data consumption. These are the two indicators of why Indians are going to consume more digital video and with that there will be better opportunities both on the ad-supported side as well as on the subscription side,” he commented on how the overall ecosystem has fared. 

  • ZEE5 to stream ‘Bhram’ on October 24

    ZEE5 to stream ‘Bhram’ on October 24

    MUMBAI:  The OTT giant ZEE5 is coming out with a new series titled 'Bhram' which will be a one of its kind psychological thriller with an extra topping of horror. 2019 is the year that has seen Indian cinema progress to greater heights not just in mainstream cinema but even in the OTT space. ZEE5 has become a forerunner when it comes to delivering fresh and original content and there's no slowing them down.

    The genre of psychological thrillers is rarely tapped into, owing to its complexity and the extreme efforts needed to pull it off successfully. ZEE5 isn't one to back down from making daring and new content and with 'Bhram' they plan to open the doors to this genre given how it is one of the most followed themes.

    Bhram is the story of a novelist essayed by Kalki Koechlin, who is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and how she goes through the many eccentric emotions while pursuing a story.

    'Bhram' stars Kalki Koechlin in the lead along with Sanjay Suir, Bhumika Chawla, Eijaz Khan. The series is written by K Hari Kumar and is directed by Sangeeth Sivan.

  • Zeel reports higher op revenue, PAT for Q2 2020

    Zeel reports higher op revenue, PAT for Q2 2020

    BENGALURU: The Subhash Chandra-led Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) reported 7.6 percent and 7.4 percent y-o-y growth in total and operating revenues for the quarter ended 30 September 2019 (Q2 2020, quarter or period under review) as compared to the corresponding year ago quarter Q2 2019. Profit after tax grew 6.7 percent y-o-y, while Total comprehensive income (TCI) declined 9.5 percent y-o-y. Operating profit (EBITDA) grew 2.5 percent y-o-y in Q2 2020 as compared to Q2 2019.

    Zeel reported total revenues of Rs 2,190.13 crore and Rs 2,034.79 crore for Q2 2020 and Q1 2019 respectively. Operating revenue for the period under review was Rs 2,122.01 crore and Rs 1,975.86 crore respectively. PAT for Q2 2020 was Rs 412.09 crore, while it was Rs 386.10 crore for the corresponding year ago quarter. TCI for Q1 2020 and Q1 2019 were Rs 471.77 crore and 521.43 crore respectively. Simple operating EBITDA for the quarter under review was Rs 692.93 crore (32.65 percent margin) and for Q2 2019 it was 675.72 crore (34.20 percent margin of operating revenue.

    Growth in revenue in Q2 2020 was driven by 1.2 percent and 19 percent y-o-y growths in advertisement and subscription revenue respectively. Zeel reported ad revenue of Rs 1,224.66 crore in Q2 2020 and Rs 1,210.60 crore in Q1 2019. The company reported subscription revenue of Rs 723.50 crore in Q2 2020 and Rs 608.16 crore in Q1 2019.

    Zeel managing director and CEO Punit Goenka said through an earnings release: “I am pleased with the performance we have exhibited during the quarter. Our entertainment portfolio continues to grow from strength to strength across all formats and maintained its leading position. Our television network has emerged stronger post the implementation of tariff order on the back of a strong customer connect and brand pull of its channels. ZEE5 continued to gain traction across audience segments and markets, driven by its compelling content library and expanding of partnerships across the digital eco-system. This strong operating performance allowed us to deliver industry leading growth in both advertising and subscription despite the tough macro-economic environment. Domestic subscription growth of 27 percent has reaffirmed the value proposition our television network has built over the years. The impact of tariff order has now largely settled down and has brought increased transparency along with improved monetisation. Our domestic advertising revenue growth, though significantly lower than historical trend, is higher than the industry growth. We have witnessed an improvement in ad spends through the quarter and we believe that the onset of festive season along with measures taken by the government will help revive the consumption growth."

    Let us look at the other numbers reported by Zeel

    Total Expenditure for Q2 2020 grew 9.2 percent y-o-y to Rs 1,514.13 crore from Rs 1,386.45 crore in Q2 2019. Operating costs in Q2 2020 grew 23.4 percent y-o-y to Rs 896.25 crore from Rs 726.34 crore. Other expenses during the quarter under review declined 18.6 percent y-o-y to Rs 195.31 crore from Rs 240.03 crore. Employee benefits expense in Q2 2020 grew 25.8 percent y-o-y to Rs  212.26 crore from Rs 168.72 crore. Ad and publicity expensed in Q2 2020 declined 24.1 percent y-o-y to Rs 125.26 crore from Rs 165.05 crore finance costs in Q2 2020 more than tripled (3.3 times) y-o-y in Q2 2020 to Rs 17.97 crore from Rs 5.45 crore.

  • ZEE5 and Wework host discussion on changing landscape of the digital world

    ZEE5 and Wework host discussion on changing landscape of the digital world

    MUMBAI: Addressingthe rapidly evolving digital ecosystem in India, ZEE5 India and WeWork India today co-created an evening of discussions on the Changing Landscape of the Digital World.Tarun Katial, CEO – ZEE5 India, India’s fastest growing ConTech brand, and Ryan Bennett, CWeO of WeWork India, welcomed the guests present for the evening.Bringing forth expert voices from multiple sectors of the techno-sphere, the event was attended by content creators and enablers alike, making it an eclectic mix in the room.

    The evening comprised of two separate panel discussionscentred on Technology and Content.

    •    Themed on ‘Transforming technologies in the digital media landscape’, the Technology-focussed discussion brought Deepak Pande, Associate Director – Vodafone Idea, Vijay Kolli, Head – Mobile Strategy, Akamai Technologies and Ashish Dhawan, Managing Director – Enterprise Business, Amazon Web Services on the panel, moderated by Tushar Vohra, Head – Technology, ZEE5 India.

    •    The Content discussion that revolved around ‘OTT: The golden age of screenagers | How digital video streaming has become a lifestyle!’ brought Ekta Kapoor, Joint Managing Director, Balaji Telefilms, renowned actress Dia Mirza,and Ashvini Yardi, Bollywood Producer together moderated by Tarun Katial.

    ZEE5 and WeWork have been disruptors in their respective areas of business, and the digital ecosystem as a whole. Leveraging the synergies,the initiative aims to bring the community together to encourage industry-wide conversations around the evolution of digital world and how the players can collaborate to offer a valuable solution to the viewer.

    Tarun Katial, CEO, ZEE5 India said,“The boom in digital infrastructure in the country today has enabled the man on the street to consume content in his preferred language anytime, anywhere. For the OTT industry to remain ahead of the game always, we believe that the industry needs to come together to chart out a growth trajectory which changes keeping country’s dynamic digital landscape in mind.WeWork and ZEE5 have been disruptors in their individual capacities, and we couldn’t have chosen a better partner to set forth on this journey. With thought leaders of the calibre we saw here today, this was certainly an interesting first of many such discussions we hope to spur in the ecosystem.”

    Ryan Bennett, CWeO, WeWork India, “We are thrilled to host this interesting discussion on the changing landscape of the digital world. Such discussions help in bringing together young innovators and leverage their synergies to find solutions to relevant issues, while collaborating and developing long-lasting relationships amongst one another. Fostering this community-building spirit and encouraging industry-wide conversations is our passion as we are constantly undertaking initiatives that bring the community together.”

    Ekta Kapoor, Joint Managing Director, Balaji Telefilms, “There are three faces to every viewer – the family face, the friend's face and the face when you are alone. In my view, digital viewing is for that third face – what you watch when you are alone. Different kinds of content work for different kinds of people in different places. Television has evolved over the past 20 years; storytelling has changed. I can tell you with confidence that no medium is dying, all of them are heading towards peaceful co-existence. For every user who is going digital in urban areas, there is one person who has bought a new TV in a village. There is no one size that fits all in content. Different communities are watching different things. So hyper-personalisation is the new normal.”

    Dia Mirza, Actor, Producer, UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador & United Nations Secretary General Advocate for Sustainable Development Goals, “Social content is driving people to viewing a different kind of content – be it cinema, television or the web series. People are connecting with the stories that they see now. I believe that there is a larger purpose to story-telling and it is a powerful medium to change the way that people are thinking. Self-expression is key. The digital medium has democratised content, and this means an explosion of good content like never before bringing ample opportunity for the talented people out there who are struggling to find enough work in the industry today.”

    Ashvini Yardi, Content Producer and Founder of Viniyard Films, “I have been in the industry for the longest time and have seen the industry change in these years. Content has always been the striving force for a successful project be it on GEC channels, Cinema or digital platforms. While I was working with one of the most popular channels, I realised I wanted to explore something new and that's when OMG (the movie) happened. Moving away from something I knew and enjoyed was not easy, but films – especially OMG – was something that fascinated me, and I took the chance to explore my passion. Today I look back and feel it was a good decision. OTT is a great platform to showcase one's creativity and to choose the right channel for the content. Each channel has a different target audience and one has the freedom to create success stories, if chosen wisely. I think the industry is only going to boom with amazing work and talent.”

    Vijay Kolli, Head of Mobile Strategy, AKAMAI, “Hyper-personalisation is here to stay. Platforms are increasingly looking for the right kind of content to build viewer stickiness with the platform. We, at Akamai, carried out a survey to understand audiences’ emotional reactions to the content they were they consuming. The insights from this survey has helped us in laying out the philosophy for ad integration into OTT platforms and developing tools to gauge this effectively. As we inch towards 5G implementation, demand will rise for applications of Artificial Reality and its high interactivity component. Given Japan is moving closer to the year of hosting the Olympics, they are investing heavily into AR to elevate the entire experience; we are seeing a lot of movement there.”

    Deepak Pande, Associate Director, IoT, Vodafone Business Services, “There are two stories to hyper-personalisation – besides the obvious, there is a set of people who are worried that in case of too much personalisation, they may miss out on some spectrum of content. Convergence of technologies is happening at an unprecedented level and this will have a profound impact on the experiences that consumers are seeking. Possibility of what can be achieved through implementation of 5G is enormous, the cost is what we have to ready to bear.”

    Ashish Dhawan, Managing Director – Enterprise, Amazon Web Services, “Hyper-personalisation is complicated – applying all the tools to read and analyse the consumption trends generated by the viewerand then accessing the appropriate CX to present content to them. Difference between 4G and 5G is not just speed but the reduction in delay of response. Communication across time zones and across the ends of the planet will get lower. And with this, we will see an immediate benefit to sectors such as healthcare, education, entertainment and such.”