Study of the online video on demand industry to recommend strategies to increase its penetration in India

Abstract

In the age of speed, convenience and instant gratification, video on demand (VoD) services, with an estimated global market of US$90.8 billion by 2020, is an industry to watch out for.1 The video on demand services has reformulated the value proposition for customers and has brought about a complete transformation in the operations and value chain system of organisations operating in this industry. The industry is in a transitional stage and hence will make a very insightful study. The Indian scenario will be fascinating to understand as on one hand television content has ruled the roost over the past many decades and it would seem that VoD will not make a huge dent in the market but, on the other hand VoD services are growing at a CAGR of 31% in AsiaPacific region, smartphone users will reach the 700 million mark by 2020 in India which makes India an ideal market for VoD service industry.2 There are 3-4 key players currently in the Indian market (Hotstar, Netflix, Amazon Prime) with different business models broadly in terms of pricing, content management, target customers and revenue model. It will be interesting to see and gauge which model can be best sustained in the long term or if there is a need of a modified model to suit the Indian context. We aim to study the video on demand industry (VoD) in the Indian context and the key factors that has contributed to the growth of the industry. We will analyse the current business models and strategies of the key players like Hotstar, Netflix and Prime Video. We intend to understand the shifts in consumer behaviour and how it has impacted the industry and recommend strategies and a business model for the future for increasing the penetration of VoD in India and to make it sustainable in the long term