Leading mobile service operator Bharti Airtel has announced the launch of a video streaming platform, Airtel Xstream Premium, aggregating content from 15 OTT platforms.
The service, which features OTT services like Sony Liv, Lionsgate Play, Manorama Max and Hoichoi, will be available with a single login, at an introductory price of 149 rupees per month.
“(This) is a game changing innovation to democratise OTT content in India by solving the key challenges of content discovery, affordability and distribution,” said Adarsh Nair, CEO, Airtel Digital. “As a unified digital platform, it is a win-win proposition for customers and OTT players alike as we begin an exciting journey to make digital entertainment mainstream in India.”
Airtel is aiming at two crore subscribers, mainly from its captive mobile service base, for this and plans to add in more OTT platforms going forward. The service will be available across all screens, from mobile phones to computers and on TVs via Airtel DTH as well as downloads on smart TVs.
According to Media Partners Asia, by 2025, India’s OTT subscription market is expected to grow to Rs 15,000 crore from the current Rs 4,000 crore or so. This will be led by a three-fold growth in subscriptions to approximately 16 crore. A large proportion of these subscriptions will come from new users from tier 2 and tier 3 markets. A number of high quality content houses have launched their OTT apps to tap into this opportunity, but are facing pricing and distribution challenges.
“It is not easy (for regional OTT platforms); the marketing and technology budgets are very expensive,” explained Nair on Airtel’s strategy of bringing together regional OTT leaders under this umbrella. “Their contents is fantastic but the marketing is expensive. Those are the (kind of) players we are bringing together into a single experience, under one price and one login.”
Some of the other OTT names who have joined this aggregation service include Shemaroo, Ultra, HungamaPlay, EPICon, Docubay, DivoTV, Klikk, Nammaflix, Dollywood and Shorts TV.
“Our partnership with Airtel Xstream will bring premium content – from originals, movies, sports and Sony India network content in all the leading languages and top shows from Hollywood to over 34 crore Airtel customers,” said Manish Aggarwal, Head (Growth and Monetisation), Sony Liv.
