OTT Platforms vs Theatres – Burning Issues – Free PDF Download

Closed Cinemas Pushing Movies  towards OTT release

• As cinemas remain closed amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, several movies including Amitabh Bachchan and Ayushmann Khurrana-starrer “Gulabo Sitabo” and Vidya Balans “Shakuntala Devi” have lined up for a digital release, ditching the traditional route of a theatrical opening.
• This has led to a tug of war between producers and exhibitors.

Video streaming platforms

• Netflix
• Prime Video by Amazon
• Eros Now
• Zee5
• Disney+
• Hotstar
• MX Player
• Sony Liv
• YuppTV
• VOOT

Lockdown Gains

• Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc., have witnessed a record surge in subscriptions during the lockdown.
• Nielsen smartphone panel reports spike in Metros is around 19% vs Non Metro 23%, averaging almost 4hrs/per week VOD consumption.

AD revenue increasing

• Advertisers in India have shifted media budgets to OTT channels in tandem with the spike in media consumption since lockdown measures were put in place on 25 March. (Doesn’t include Netflix and Amazon)
• March: 16,000 ad insertions
• April: 33,000 ad insertions
• Why are OTTs gaining popularity?
• The choice and diversity of content on these platforms is much greater.
• A film theatre has to cater to mainstream audience expectations for business reasons.
• In the process, many deserving films often miss out on decent screening slots or have to make do with whatever is available.
• The online platforms do not have to deal with these concerns and offer a good mix of both mainstream and art-house cinema.

Projected Growth

• The Over-The-Top media services (OTT) market in India is predicted to grow at 21.8% CAGR from Rs 4,464 crore in 2018 to Rs. 11,976 crore in 2023, according to PwC’s Global Entertainment and Media Outlook 2019–2023

The Small town growth

• Audiences that hadn’t discovered OTT viewing are coming on to these platforms, especially from Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities
• One of the trends that have become crucial to the mass adoption of OTT platforms in India is the rise of smartphones. Consumption of web shows is primarily happening on smartphones
• Acc to most platforms – 80% of viewing happens on smartphones

Cinema offering

• Theatre owners are swearing by the cinema halls that do not just screen movies, “but offer an experience.”
• The industry is now beginning to find solutions to some critical issues.

Both can co-exist

• The move to release some content will relieve some short-term financial pressure on production houses.
• However, the Indian film industry is still dependent on the box office for a majority of its revenue and will need to continue to keep the exhibition industry as a close partner once the COVID-19 crisis is over.
• According to Ficci-EY 2020 report, in 2019, the filmed entertainment segment grew 9.5% to Rs 11,500 crore (domestic box collection).

What can Movie theatres do?

• Health checkpoints and sanitisation
• Anti-bacterial films on all door handles
• Fewer shows in the cinema’s programming
• Staggered seating (gaps) between groups
• Only digital booking systems (app or online)
• ‘One-meter’ floor stickers and glass barriers at the box office
• Limiting ‘touch’ points –  digital payments, QR codes on food and beverage packaging
• Limited menu – packaged food only
• No denying the fact that watching a film on the big screen has its own merits and an inherent sense of community but safety concerns might outweigh everything else.

Cinema has survived

• World wars
• Advent of Television in majority of home
• Advent of personal home devices like VCR and CD players
• The Internet and piracy boom
• Smartphone and tab like devices
• OTT onslaught

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