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<ul><li><keyword id="691847" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Google-Cloud">Google Cloud</keyword> has appointed <keyword id="2776926" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bikram-Singh-Bedi">Bikram Singh Bedi</keyword> as its new India Managing Director.</li><li>Bedi’s appointment comes as Google Cloud had recently elevated its India head Karan Bajwa as the Vice President of Google Cloud in Asia Pacific.</li><li>Bedi was the man who set up Amazon Web Services in India and led the vertical for six years long.</li></ul>Google Cloud has appointed Bikram Singh Bedi as its new India Managing Director. Interestingly, Bedi was the man who set up Amazon Web Services in India and led the vertical for six years long. Bedi’s appointment comes as Google Cloud had recently elevated its India head Karan Bajwa as the Vice President of Google Cloud in Asia Pacific. Right before joining Google Cloud, Bedi was the President Strategy and New Initiatives of Indian grocery startup Grofers. At Google, Bedi will be responsible for leading Google Cloud’s sales and operations teams in this dynamic market. “I’m excited about this new challenge and I look forward to extending Google Cloud’s momentum in India. The true test of 2021 will be how enterprises will leverage cloud computing to modernize and scale for growth and Google Cloud is committed to help them accelerate their digital transformation to build a strong foundation for the future,” said Bedi. The India cloud market is ramping up with players like Microsoft, Amazon, Google, IBM all looking for a share in the segment. The overall India public cloud services market is likely to touch $7.4 billion by 2024 growing at a CAGR of 22.2% for 2020-24, said a report by International Data Corporation. And Google has been making its presence felt in the segment with clients like industry leaders Wipro, TVS to startups like Sharechat. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/interview-a-hedge-fund-manager-explains-where-to-invest-when-nothing-is-cheap-in-india/articleshow/80682629.cms">INTERVIEW: A hedge fund manager explains where to invest when nothing is cheap in India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/kishore-biyani-says-sebi-ban-wont-stop-future-group-deal-with-reliance/articleshow/80680781.cms">Kishore Biyani says SEBI ban won't stop Future Group's deal with Reliance</a>

Bikram Singh Bedi, the man who set up AWS in India, has now joined Google Cloud

Mumbai, Mar 25 () With people staying at home during the 21-day lockdown called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the streaming services in India have decided to temporarily suspend HD and ultra-HD services to ensure smooth running of internet services.The lockdown, a measure taken to contain the spread of the coronavirus in the country, will lead to more traffic on the cellular network infrastructure, a release from the digital industry said post the meeting of key players."It was unanimously agreed that as an exceptional measure, all companies will immediately adopt measures, including temporarily defaulting HD and ultra-HD streaming to SD content or offering only SD content, at bitrates no higher than 480p on cellular networks. These voluntary measures will be in effect until April 14. All participants are immediately taking measures," the release said.The virtual meeting on Tuesday was called by Uday Shankar, Chairman, Star &amp; Disney India and attended by NP Singh (Sony), Sanjay Gupta (Google), Ajit Mohan (Facebook), Sudhanshu Vats (Viacom18), Gaurav Gandhi (Amazon Prime Video), Punit Goenka (Zee), Nikhil Gandhi (Tiktok), Ambika Khurana (Netflix), Karan Bedi (MX Player) and Varun Narang (Hotstar). BK BKBK

Lockdown: Streaming platforms suspend HD, ultra-HD services until April 14

Diwali, also known as the festival of lights, is widely observed by Indians all over the world. The festival emphasises the value of light over darkness and aims to improve people's outlooks on life. Bollywood celebrities have been spotted enjoying the week-long celebrations before the festival's arrival in advance of this auspicious day. This exemplifies the excitement and joy that prominent Bollywood stars have for Diwali. Let's take a look at the significant happenings this week and the events we have coming up. Ayushmann Khurrana Ananya Panday, Kriti Sanon, Rakul Preet Singh, Richa Chadha, Ali Fazal, and filmmaker Karan Johar were among the prominent figures who attended the pre-Diwali party that Bollywood actor Ayushmann Khurrana and his filmmaker wife Tahira Kashyap hosted in Mumbai on October 17. The B-Town Diwali celebrations in 2022 got underway with this party. Kriti Sanon Bollywood actress Kriti Sanon hosted a star-studded Diwali party at her place on October 19. We saw a number of well-known celebrities at the party. The presence of Karan Johar, Varun Dhawan, Natasha Dalal, Neha Dhupia, Angad Bedi, and others at Kriti Sanon's party also made headlines in B-Town. Manish Malhotra A well-known fashion designer Manish Malhotra hosted a Diwali party on October 20. Numerous celebrities were part of it to enlighten the Diwali celebrations. It appeared as though the entire Bollywood industry had gathered at Manish Malhotra's party. You did read that correctly. If you can think of someone, you probably saw them there, along with a close friend or relative, At the gathering, we noticed Karan Johar, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Sidharth Malhotra, Kiara Advani, Kajol, Madhuri Dixit, Karisma Kapoor, and a number of other celebrities. At Manish Malhotra's party, the starlets stole the show as many of them, including Shanaya Kapoor, Suhana Khan, Ananya Panday, Janhvi Kapoor, Khushi Kapoor, Sara Ali Khan, and others, were present. Bhumi Pednekar Bollywood actress Bhumi Pednekar hosted a pre-Diwali party on October 21, and a number of well-known stars, including Rajkummar Rao, Patralekhaa, Rakul Preet Singh, and Jackky Bhagnani to name a few, were seen arriving at the location. The star kids stole the show at the lavish party, as we saw Aryan Khan, Suhana Khan, and Ajay Devgn's daughter Nysa Devgan among others. Ekta Kapoor &amp; Anand Pandit Ekta Kapoor and Anand Pandit, two well-known producers, will host two separate Diwali parties on Saturday night, October 22. Numerous prominent celebrities have been seen attending both of these parties. Amitabh Bachchan, Ajay Devgn, Kajol, Kriti Sanon, and other celebrities arrived in style at Anand Pandit's party. Veteran actors Jitendra and Rakesh Roshan in one frame at Ekta Kapoor's party. Arpita Khan Sharma, Ashvini Yardi, Ananya Panday, Alaya F, Disha Patani, and other well-known celebrities were also seen there.

Here's how Bollywood partied this Diwali

<ul><li>As <keyword id="10411622" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ott-consumption">OTT consumption</keyword> sees an uptick, <keyword id="2214311" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mx-player">MX Player</keyword> cuts down video streaming <keyword id="1588632" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Data-consumption">data consumption</keyword> by half. </li><li>MX Player upgrades to video encoding and compression technology to H.266 (Versatile Video Coding) that slashes data usage for streaming videos by more than half.</li></ul>Online video consumption in India has grown exponentially, accounting for 80% of consumer internet traffic. But the user experience continues to remain highly dependent on data usage and network speed. MX Player, India's entertainment super-app with over 200 million Monthly Active Users has become the world’s first OTT platform to upgrade its video encoding &amp; compression technology to H.266 (Versatile Video Coding) that slashes data usage for streaming videos by more than half. MX Player as well as MX TakaTak users will be the first in the world to experience the benefits of H.266, enabling them to consume higher quality HD video streams with significantly less data consumption. With H.266, MX Player users will be able to stream more content with less data and network bandwidth - video streams will load faster and buffer less since they require only half (or less) the data it would need otherwise. H.266/VVC is the world’s most advanced video codec designed to succeed H.264/AVC and H.265/HEVC used by most of the streaming video services worldwide today. Unlike its competitors, the H.266 upgrade makes MX Player the first OTT platform in the world to deploy this technology. <div type="image" title="image" msid="83537290" hostid="261"></div> <keyword id="1005666" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Karan-Bedi">Karan Bedi</keyword>, CEO, MX Player and MX TakaTak said, “Video consumption dominates internet usage wherever you go across India, but the quality of experience deteriorates in areas with inconsistent data networks. The new standard is an opportunity for MX Player to give millions of users, regardless of where they are, an exceptional streaming experience that allows them to consume content the way content creators intended: faster loading, buffering-free, and true-to-life HD quality.” Sidd Mantri, SVP Product, MX Player further added, “At MX Player, the future is now. We relentlessly focus on raising the customer experience bar for Indian users. We were amongst the 1st few OTTs to deploy AV1 that reduced data consumption by 20-30% compared to H.265. With H.266, we are taking it to the next level. H.266 offers the most advanced video compression standard available in the world and reduces data usage by more than 50%. Many users in India live on daily data consumption caps, so with H.266 they can watch more as well as watch better on MX Player.”

MX Player cuts down video streaming data consumption by half; upgrades its video encoding and compression technology to H.266

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], February 29 (ANI): Power couple Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone are all set to embrace parenthood. The 'DeepVeer' are expecting their first child. On Thursday, the couple took to Instagram and shared the good news with their fans and followers. https://www.instagram.com/p/C36wUZJovqw/ The announcement image featured the baby's clothes, shoes and playful stuff. The image mentioned Deepika's delivery date, "September 2024." As soon as the news was shared, fans and industry members chimed in the comment section. Mom-to-be Richa Chadha wrote, "badhai." <keyword id="19933229" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sonam-kapoor" source="keywords">Sonam Kapoor</keyword> commented, "Congratulations." Manish Malhotra posted, "congratulations." Angad Bedi commented, "Congratulations ennoy the best journey of life ever @deepikapadukone @ranveersingh ." <keyword id="20008375" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sonakshi-sinha" source="keywords">Sonakshi Sinha</keyword> wrote, "Your best production yet!!!! So so happy for you both... congratulations." Ranveer-Deepika tied the knot on November 14, 2018, at Italy's Lake Como after dating for six long years and the duo never fails to shower love on each other on social media. They first met on the sets of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's romantic drama film 'Goliyon Ki Rasleela Ram-Leela' and later also starred in 'Bajirao Mastani' and 'Padmaavat'. On the work front, Deepika was recently seen in the aerial action thriller film 'Fighter' opposite Hrithik Roshan. Helmed by <keyword id="19910290" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="siddharth-anand" source="keywords">Siddharth Anand</keyword>, the film also starred Anil Kapoor, Karan Singh Grover and Akshay Oberoi in pivotal roles and received good responses from the audience. She will be next seen in the sci-fi action thriller film 'Kalki 2898 AD' alongside south actor Prabhas. Helmed by Nag Ashwin, the film also stars Amitabh Bachchan and will hit the theatres on May 9, 2024. Ranveer, on the other hand, will be seen reprising his role of Simmba in Rohit Shetty's cop drama '<keyword id="20032943" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="singham-again" source="keywords">Singham Again</keyword>', which also stars Deepika Padukone, actors Ajay Devgn, Akshay Kumar, <keyword id="19915804" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="tiger-shroff" source="keywords">Tiger Shroff</keyword> and Kareena Kapoor Khan. Ranveer will also headline Farhan Akhtar's 'Don 3.' 'Don 3' will arrive in 2025.

Deepveer announce pregnancy, baby to arrive in September

<ul><li>The combined short video platform will have over 300M MAUs and 100M strong creator community.</li><li><keyword id="11984975" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="mx-media" source="Orion">MX Media</keyword> and its shareholders will become strategic shareholders of <keyword id="3358959" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="sharechat" source="Orion">ShareChat</keyword>.</li></ul>MX Media Co. Ltd, the parent company of <keyword id="9555198" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="mx-takatak" source="Orion">MX TakaTak</keyword>, and ShareChat, the parent company of <keyword id="8678883" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="moj" source="Orion">Moj</keyword>, today announced a strategic merger between Moj and MX <keyword id="7638068" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="takatak" source="Orion">TakaTak</keyword>, to create the largest short video platform for Indians, whereby the two platforms will now be controlled by ShareChat. The combined platform will have 100 million creators, over 300 million Monthly Active Users (MAU), and nearly 250 billion monthly video views. Post this transaction, MX Media and its shareholders will become strategic shareholders of ShareChat. Since its launch in July 2020, Moj has emerged as the largest Indian short video app, with over 160 million MAUs and over 50 million creator communities in the 15 Indian languages. The company has been investing heavily in social and live commerce and growing its AI/ML team which is now over 100 people strong and spread across the US, Europe, and India. MX TakaTak was launched in July 2020 and reached 150 million MAUs, across 10 languages. The platform’s deep access to content talent and understanding of the MX Media ecosystem user base has seen this high growth in a short span of time. MX TakaTak will continue to function as a separate platform for now, but the two platforms’ creator base, content supply and recommendation algorithms will be integrated. In the coming months, the experience of users and creators will converge enabling creators from both platforms to reach the most extensive set of audiences in India. This will provide users access to unique features including best-in-class camera creation tools with Snap filters, live commerce, and a vast music library. Commenting on the merger, Ankush Sachdeva, CEO and Cofounder, ShareChat &amp; Moj, said, “We at ShareChat are building India’s largest content ecosystem which has been on an unprecedented growth trajectory. MX TakaTak is a popular platform and this merger further solidifies our position in the short video ecosystem. With this development, we aim to build the largest original content platform on Moj along with the largest community of users across India.” Commenting on the partnership, Karan Bedi, CEO MX Media said, “I am excited to announce the strategic merger of India’s two most popular social media platforms. As India's largest digital entertainment platform, MX has always strived to build superior world class products, and TakaTak is no exception. This combined with Moj’s AI and execution capabilities makes the combined business a truly world class short video platform. MX has created two ‘unicorns’ within one business, unlocking significant value for our shareholders, and will now continue to double down on OTT, with significantly increased financial resources.”

ShareChat and MX Media announce a strategic merger of Moj and MX TakaTak

India’s <keyword id="4578" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="entertainment">entertainment</keyword> scene is changing drastically. Internet penetration has unboxed a new world of exclusive content that’s widely popular among the masses. 
 At such a critical crossroad when most industries are expected to go the <keyword id="6369871" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Mobile-app">mobile app</keyword> way, Business Insider India chats up with Karan Bedi, COO of <keyword id="2480506" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Eros-Now">Eros Now</keyword> to find out what the future of the entertainment might look like. 
 
1. A mere 7-8% of India’s population is online. Don’t you see that as a limiting factor to online movie streaming? 
 
While the numbers today are not that large, they are growing, and with telcos gearing up for 4G, it’s a massive potential market. In India, 7-8% is still a large number, and we expect it to be 50% in the next 2-3 years. 
 
2. Eros Now has announced online-only premieres for some recent films. Could this dilute the media attention theatrical premiers get? 
 
 Theatrical premiers are of paramount importance. The charm of the big screen is here to stay. With our online initiative of ‘TV se pehle’ (Before it comes on TV) we are streaming some of our key properties for online viewing. At Eros we believe digital is the future of the entertainment industry, and we’ve stepped ahead of satellite television to jump directly to Eros Now. 
 
3. Online original series are a rage today with players like AIB and TVF grabbing eyeballs. What’s the potential market for such free online shows? 
 
The limit is only the size of the population that has access to the internet. Like with TV, there is always space for everyone in the country to be involved in some form of online entertainment content. TVF and AIB have their focus on short-form funny stuff, and while we may have similar content, some of it has a completely different genre. 
 
4. How do you see entertainment consumed in the future? 
 
There is an unequivocal belief that the future of entertainment is on the internet. India is primarily a mobile-first market, and is getting to a point where it might be a mobile only market. Entertainment has moved light years ahead of TV. 
 
5. Many experts argue against that with the statistics of the digitized TV audience. Your comments on that. 
 
Being the largest studio in Bollywood, Eros has been historically known for top quality entertainment. Our sense of content is unparalleled and that’s a big driver of audiences to our platform. Our technical base also allows us to offer cool new platform specific features that our audiences would enjoy and can innovate with. 
 
6. Developing economies like India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore are the global hubs for piracy. Do you see these people willing to pay for movies or music? 
 
Piracy has been a concern for the entertainment industry for times immemorial. Now we have pirated DVDs, before that we had pirated cassettes. As platforms evolve, piracy would also evolve. However, if you give people easy access to content that promises them a great experience at a reasonable price, they would come on board. 
 
7. What could possibly be the dominant models for entertainment monetization? 
 
There are several monetization models - transactional, ad supported or subscription-based. Many others are evolving. It’s too early to decide what works best and what doesn’t. 
 
8. Any plans to go app only? 
 
There are no plans as of now. We are rolling out apps for Smart TVs and adding new functionalities to the app and website. 
 
Image credit: Indiatimes

The future of entertainment is online: Eros Now

Mumbai, Actor <keyword id="2069863" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="bhumi-pednekar" source="Orion">Bhumi Pednekar</keyword> says the coronavirus pandemic-induced lockdown led to cost cutting and thus affected the budget of women-centric films. The actor currently features in buddy comedy "Thank You For Coming", which has a predominantly female cast. Also starring <keyword id="7903367" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="shehnaaz-gill" source="Orion">Shehnaaz Gill</keyword>, <keyword id="573702" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="dolly-singh" source="Orion">Dolly Singh</keyword>, <keyword id="8251961" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="kusha-kapila" source="Orion">Kusha Kapila</keyword>, and <keyword id="4477193" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="shibani-bedi" source="Orion">Shibani Bedi</keyword>, the film will hit the screens Friday. According to Pednekar, "Veere Di Wedding" was the last female-led movie that did well at the box office with earnings of around Rs 130 crore. Its producers Rhea Kapoor and Ektaa R Kapoor have reunited for "Thank You For Coming". "'Veere Di Wedding' is the last female story that worked and the same producers are making this film. After 'Veere Di Wedding' we had more such stories. Then lockdown (due to COVID-19) happened and then obviously there was cost cutting on female-centric films. Then again, we saw Rhea Kapoor, who made this kind of film again," the Mumbai-born actor told PTI in an interview here. Citing the example of her 2019 film "Saand Ki Aankh", Pednekar said the box office collections are not in anyone's control. "It is all about whether the film is good or bad. I remember when I had done 'Saand Ki Aankh', which is a female-led film, compared to another film, which released on the same day, and it did overall business of Rs 350 crore. While my film did Rs 45 crore but our film was running in theatres for 100 days," she added. The beauty of cinema is that good work will always "be remembered and watched for generations", the actor said. "Films earn money but we hope people will come and watch our films. We don't take the pressure because certain things are not in our hands." "Thank You For Coming" is a coming-of-age comedy which follows the story of Kanika Kapoor (Pednekar), a single woman in her 30s, and her quest for true love and pleasure. It is written by Radhika Anand and Prashasti Singh and directed by Karan Boolani. The 34-year-old actor said the film's story uses female desire to explore the theme of patriarchy in society. "Orgasm is a metaphor for a larger scheme of things that the film talks about. The film is against patriarchy, it is not about man versus woman, because patriarchy is not gender specific. "Women and men both are patriarchal. That's the thought of the film. The film is about sisterhood, womanhood... Every film has a thought or a premise, so this is the premise of the film," she said. Pednekar, known for films such as "Dum Laga Ke Haisha", "Toilet: Ek Prem Katha", and "Shubh Mangal Saavdhan", said the cast stuck to the light-hearted tone of the story of "Thank You For Coming". "If we had not kept this tone of the film... We would not have been honest to what we have made. If we are making a film about female pleasure and if we are only shying to talk about it, then what's the point?" She hopes "Thank You For Coming" helps diminish the stigma around sexual liberation of women. "Till the time, 'Shubh Mangal Saavdhan' had not been released people would shy to talk about the topic of erectile dysfunction. It was an issue in families but one would not be able to talk about it, I believe that film eased the conservation. "I feel with this film ('Thank You For Coming'), female orgasm, female desire, and all this is one part of the film, these are small themes in the film, but there are more important things that the film comments about. It is a normal thing," she added.

Pandemic put a break on female-led movies, says Bhumi Pednekar

<ul><li>Even after the record growth witnessed by streaming services in India, the question remains whether these platforms can retain the massive lockdown gains </li><li>With streaming services under pressure to provide new content frequently and producers trying to not lose money in films, web premiers might be another new normal. </li><li>Moreover, a KPMG report suggested that OTT platforms should look at gaming as an extension to their ecosystem offerings. </li></ul>Streaming services are the only bright spot for the millions who are isolating at home during lockdown. With ample leisure time and fewer options, usage of streaming platforms surged. Most of the 35 streaming giants in India — <keyword id="3960758" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon-Prime-Videos">Amazon Prime Videos</keyword>, <keyword id="6245082" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ZEE5">Zee5</keyword>. Voot, Hungama, AltBalaji, MX Player — witnessed a record growth fueled by quarantine. The Big Boost During the lockdown, there was a 265% increase in OTT traffic since February last week — in spite of the drop from HD to SD, according to Internet Exchange operator DE-CIX. The five services that gained the most are Amazon Prime Videos, Netflix, Youtube, Zee5 and Hotstar. Disney+ — which was launched soon after India locked itself down —<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2020/04/08/disney-has-more-than-50m-subscribers/"> added 8 million users </a>within a week. Whereas, Netflix India — which was earlier losing to the homegrown market — too <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/exclusive-app-tracking-data-for-netflix-reveals-the-countries-where-usage-spiked-in-march-and-suggests-strong-viewership-heading-into-q1-earnings/articleshow/75162782.cms">saw at least an 8% growth in Q1FY20 driven</a> by its cheapest mobile online plan at ₹199. Zee5, a homegrown OTT platform, saw 36% growth during the lockdown. Whereas its foreign arm, <keyword id="7124509" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ZEE5-Global">Zee5 Global</keyword> saw a 60% surge in users across the world including the Middle East and Canada. Alt Balaji, yet another homegrown platform, saw a 60% growth in its subscription. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; width: 468pt; table-layout: fixed;"></colgroup></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">OTT services </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Change in viewership due to Covid-19 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Netflix India </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">+8% in Q1 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Zee5 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">+36% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Hungama Play </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">+20% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Eros Now </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">+70-100% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">MX Player</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">130% surge on engagement </td></tr></tbody></table> A short-term spike or a long-term gain A<a href="https://rollingstoneindia.com/how-the-coronavirus-is-impacting-audio-and-video-streaming-in-india/"> Nielsen report</a> predicted that lockdown can trigger a 60% rise in content consumption in India. Even after the record growth witnessed by streaming services in India, the question remains whether these platforms can retain the massive gains post lockdown. Hence, when Netflix recently said it added a record 15.8 million paid subscribers globally, it also added that it is treating it as “<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2020/04/21/neflix-q1-earnings/">a short-term spike” and the growth will gradually decline. </a> A KPMG report, however, believes that OTTs are likely to see continued accelerated growth. "While the same levels of consumption may not be achieved once we overcome this pandemic, there is definitely a new and higher normal that is likely to be established when it comes to time spent on OTT platforms," Girish Menon, Partner and Head, Media and Entertainment, KPMG in India told Business Insider. Moreover, Menon believes consumers are likely to develop a habit of consuming video online during lockdown which would later drive subscription growth. However, According to Karan Bedi, MX Player, OTT platforms might witness some immediate dip post lockdown, but the overall base and average time spent would continue the rise. With shooting of new TV series being delayed and movie theatres closed, services with large, legacy libraries and fresh content, have an inherent advantage. “A new normal has been witnessed as consumers adapt to the evolving situation of the pandemic. We feel this pattern will stay as it is in the post-COVID-19 era as well and perhaps there will be some incremental change in the overall user growth,” Aparna Acharekar, programming head of ZEE5 India. Ferzad Palia, who heads Voot Select in India too thinks the same. Rohit Paranjpe who heads SugarBox Networks believes new content will continue to enthuse people. The pressure on OTT services to release new content more frequently may also go up. Also, OTT players too should not be happy just retaining users and will have to engage them more. Apart from films, KPMG in a report suggested OTT platforms look at gaming as an extension to ecosystem offerings. “OTT will look to bring their consumer’s value in other areas: from aggregating other third party content providers who are not competing with them to promoting and pushing other adjacent services, like fitness and food delivery apps, and education platforms,” said Lior Friedman, VP - global partnerships and strategy at Amdocs Media. Directly onto OTT platforms With streaming services under pressure to provide new content frequently and producers trying to not lose money in films products, web premiers might be a new normal. Lakshmi Bomb featuring Akshay Kumar might release on Disney+Hotstar. MUBI is premiering Pablo Larrain’s film ‘Ema’ in India, UK and Ireland on May 2. Whereas, Zee5 is also considering premiering movies directly on its platform in the near future. AB Anni CD will be yet another film to be released directly on Amazon Prime Videos. Akshay Bardapur, the producer of the movie that stars Amitabh Bachchan said, “We didn’t want to keep audiences from watching two megastars. Also, it made sense to recover losses by selling content to the OTT.” But big-budget movies are preferring to hold back. Recently, the makers of Ranvir Singh starrer movie ‘83 said they will release the film in theatres first even <a href="https://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/ranveer-singhs-83-to-not-release-on-ott-platforms-makers-aim-for-theatrical-release/articleshow/75401861.cms">if they had to wait for six or nine months. </a> “While producers of movies that have a reasonable budget may experiment with releasing movies directly on OTT platforms or opt for a pay-per-view model, bigger films are unlikely to be released until later this year or next year,” says Neeraj Roy, founder and CEO of Hungama Digital Media. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/entertainment/news/cinema-halls-may-not-open-in-india-until-june-end/articleshow/75407053.cms">Cinema halls may not open in India until June end</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/entertainment/news/lockdown-watchlist-want-to-binge-watch-a-show-that-lasts-a-week-try-these-long-running-shows-on-netflix-amazon-prime-disney-hotstar-and-others/articleshow/75173116.cms">Lockdown Watchlist: Want to binge-watch a show that lasts a week? Try these long-running shows on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+ Hotstar and others</a>

Streaming platforms who are on a new high — are hosting web premiers and might even expand to gaming

<ul><li>Pee Safe’s sister brand Raho Safe, a feminine-hygiene company started by a man, is trying to include men in the conversation around menstruation through its latest campaign. </li><li>The campaign aims to normalise men buying pads just like other things for their women counterparts and breaking the stigma around menstruation.</li></ul>Have you also wondered why pharmacists or shopkeepers awkwardly and hurriedly respond when you ask for a sanitary napkin? They rush to find a black bag or a paper bag to wrap it in -- as if we have asked for something illegal. It is mostly hidden inside the shop -- rarely can you spot them on the counter -- unlike condoms. A lot of women whisper when they buy a pad and we continue talking about menstruation and buying pads in whispers, as if we are ashamed of it. To address this taboo, we all need to come forward and start talking about it. Pee Safe’s Raho Safe is the first brand in India to include men in conversation about menstruation. It aims to encourage men to buy pads for women in their lives and remind them that menstruation is a natural process through its campaign #menbuypads. It tells them that a true gentleman is the one who buys pads. The brand has also on-boarded well-known influencers such as Rannvijay Singha (3.6 M Followers), Angad Bedi (490K Followers), Karan Wahi (2.7 M Followers) and Mohit Malhotra (200 K Followers) to address the taboo. <div type="javascript" title="Instagram" contenttype="Image"><cdata><![CDATA[ ]]></cdata></div> It is also using humour and memes to talk about an ‘uncomfortable’ topic and target GenZ through its social media. <div type="javascript" title="Instagram" contenttype="Image"><cdata><![CDATA[ ]]></cdata></div> The idea behind the campaign is to take forward the brand’s motto of removing the mental block around hiding sanitary pads inside a newspaper or black bag, especially when men buy them and enable the transition from ‘Men Can Buy Pads’ to #menbuypads. On Daughter’s Day, which is celebrated on September 27, Raho Safe launched a revolutionary digital advertisement that shows a man partaking in a conversation about menstruation. The video has already garnered 500k views. <div type="Youtube" id="x7LSJcx6zyA" title="When They Grow up too fast" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/x7LSJcx6zyA/mqdefault.jpg"></div> The father decides to take his daughter to a mart to buy her a birthday present. He suggests a doll and a synthesizer. The daughter responds with a very innocent smile and reminds her father that she is 13 now and doesn't play with dolls anymore. He picks up a teddy bear because who doesn’t love a soft toy and finds his daughter in the hygiene section. She picks up Raho Safe’s Sanitary pad and her father looks at her proudly and nods. The voice over goes, “You don’t realise when the kids grow up. You should also act like an adult and embrace them. Help them maintain safe hygiene and stay healthy with Raho Safe.” (translated from Hindi) The song in the background balances the mood quite well and acts like a cherry on the top. It asks, “Why doesn’t the world understand that my world has changed now? Your daughter who used to play with dolls has now grown up.” Explaining the overall idea behind including men in the conversation, <keyword id="4970814" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Vikas-Bagaria">Vikas Bagaria</keyword>, Founder, Raho Safe said, “It is a normal practice for me to buy sanitary pads for my wife. Neither am I ashamed to procure them nor do I hesitate to ask for them in a store. Young girls and women are the future and it is as much the responsibility of fathers as it is of mothers to ensure they have a hygienic and safe environment to realize their goals. Raho Safe sanitary pads are not only high quality but also affordable. I care about the women around me and it is time that other men do too in more ways than one.” Elaborating on the brand’s motto behind the campaign, Bagaria added, “Today, menstrual hygiene is no longer a women’s issue alone and has a major impact on various other factors related to the overall household. Hence, it has to be considered as an important area which gets attention from all. We have created the campaign in a quirky manner to connect with the Gen Z. Our aim is to eliminate all taboos, misinformation and hesitations related to menstrual hygiene. The idea is to convey the message that there is no taboo or shame in being a man and buying sanitary pads,” According to the reports by the National Family Health Survey, nearly 336 million women are menstruating in India and only about 121 million (roughly 42%) are using sanitary napkins, locally or commercially produced. Even though India has made great strides in addressing the taboo around menstruation and ensuring access to sanitary pads to those who cannot afford them; a lot still needs to be done. Pharmacists can play a key role in normalising buying sanitary pads. They also feel uncomfortable when a woman goes to buy a sanitary pad. <keyword id="4640229" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="PeeSafe">PeeSafe</keyword> and RahoSafe have made conscious efforts to sensitise them as well. “Pharmacists are key stakeholders in the whole process of ensuring optimal menstrual hygiene for women. They are responsible for making sanitary pads and all other menstrual hygiene products available to women all over India. Hence, they need to not only understand the importance of <keyword id="2067117" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="feminine-hygiene">feminine hygiene</keyword>, but also play a part in spreading awareness about the subject. We have consistently run campaigns that integrate various stakeholders into the process, and will do more in the future bringing in pharmacists as well,” shared Bagaria.

Story behind India’s first advertisement that features a man participating in a conversation around menstruation

<ul><li>In our latest series, we look at different industries to understand what was 2020 like for them and to crystal gaze into the upcoming year, and identify some of the trends that will set the tone for 2021.</li><li>During the past few months of the global pandemic, people staying at home around the world have turned to various streaming services for entertainment. </li><li>With the coronavirus still around, we speak to OTT players to find out what would 2021 look like for the industry. </li></ul>Better connectivity, cheaper devices and even cheaper data plans have been aiding the growth of India’s over-the-top (OTT) industry over the past few years. However, 2020 became a year when more and more people came onto the digital ecosystem, thanks to being stuck at home during the lockdown. With people barely moving out of their houses, they turned to the digital world for their daily fix of entertainment. Also, people were more open with experimenting with different platforms. If an IBEF report is to be believed, the OTT sector in India saw a 30% rise in the number of paid subscribers, from 22.2 million to 29.0 million between March and July 2020. There was a visible increase in the time people were spending on most platforms. It therefore became important for platforms to come up with differentiated, fresh content that would help them stand apart. Owing to the fact that multiplexes were shut for months, many platforms also started launching movies directly on digital. Consumers have been happy for the most part. As we enter 2021, expectations from the sector are high. With the coronavirus still around, many people will continue staying in. So what will this mean for the OTT sector in 2021? Will more and more people continue coming onto platforms, and prefer to pay for the content that they like? How will OTT platforms be able to ensure consumer stickiness? What are a few trends that will stand out in 2021? We reached out to a few experts from the industry and here’s what they had to say. Archana Anand, Chief Business Officer, ZEE5 Global: <div type="image" title="Archana Anand zee5" msid="79998579" hostid="261"></div> I see two key themes that swung into prominence in 2020 emerging as key drivers of the <keyword id="9056838" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ott-industry">OTT industry</keyword>’s skyrocketing growth in 2021. With the lockdown, we’ve seen a trend of people across the globe warming up to the idea of paying for quality content, and also being willing to commit to annual subscription packs where they see value. I see this trend only accelerating in 2021, leading to strong SVOD growth. This has also been a year where international content has gained massive traction across markets. With ZEE5 and other OTT platforms offering dubbed and subtitled content, enabling people in one geography to seamlessly access stories from any other, content is now truly democratized. Storytelling is increasingly blurring boundaries and storytellers are finding newer audiences beyond their own borders. I think 2021 is going to be the year that international content comes into even greater prominence as online audiences literally discover a world of new content via their OTT platforms. Hiren Gada, CEO, Shemaroo Entertainment Limited: <div type="image" title="Hiren Gada, CEO, Shemaroo Entertainment Limited" msid="79995505" hostid="261"></div> 2021 is going to be an exciting year as OTT is already riding the wave of increased data consumption and internet penetration in the small towns and rural India. The year gone by also saw some great innovations and developments in the OTT space. From direct-to-digital releases to the increasing growth in the regional content, this year has bolstered the growing popularity of OTT to an all-time high. One trend that is expected to take centre stage is highly localised and regional content. The key to ace the trend is to have an in-depth understanding of the traditions and culture of the viewers. Understanding the deep-rooted connections our viewers have with their mother tongue, we have developed a strong regional strategy for Shemaroo across all our platforms. We have a huge content bank that ranges from Bollywood, Gujarati, Marathi, Punjabi, Kids, Devotional, and various specialised trays. Content companies saw a huge change and spike in the content viewing pattern of the audiences during the lockdown. Our regional offerings saw an impressive surge in viewership especially in the Gujarati category with viewership as high as 102% in the peak months of the lockdown. While Bollywood is our mainstay, our teams have been constantly acquiring and upgrading our regional offerings, so our audiences have something new every time they tune in. We aim to make it a more robust and comprehensive pick for any consumer who wishes to enjoy varied regional content. Ferzad Palia, Head, Voot Select, Youth, Music and English Entertainment, Viacom18: <div type="image" title="Ferzad Palia." msid="79995514" hostid="261"></div> Year 2020 saw the OTT category driven by groundbreaking storytelling and macro factors resulting in significant growth for SVOD services. Viewers’ willingness to pay for quality content is now well established. However, around 65% of subscribers are still from Top 10 metros. 2021 will buck this trend and see the Premium OTT Category in India expand its footprint outside of the top 10 metros, heralding the next phase of growth for the category. Karan Bedi, CEO - MX Player: <div type="image" title="Karan Bedia Mx player" msid="79998628" hostid="261"></div> Video streaming has become the primary mode of entertainment for most digital consumers across India this year. With this backdrop, India is set to become a key market for growth in OTT video in 2021. This will lead to an avalanche of new unique original content for these audiences as they have very little to watch on TV. In this situation, marketers are also increasingly aware of where their money works best, and would like to focus on those mediums, namely digital and OTT. Divya Dixit, SVP, Marketing, Analytics and Direct Revenue, ALTBalaji <div type="image" title="Divya, altbalaji" msid="79995519" hostid="261"></div> Digital is an ever-evolving medium and when it comes to OTT players, competition across the industry is soaring high with everyone at their toes trying to secure their places in the minds of consumers. While the pandemic of 2020 redefined content consumption, the year 2021 will chart new business alliances and revenue models for platforms to acquire direct subscriptions. The report from FICCI and E&amp;Y predicted 30-35 million paying subscribers on OTT platforms alone in the year 2021, and we are excited about carving a substantial pie out of the same. Our objective has always been content massification and with the next billion internet users set to hail from the Hindi heartlands, India’s digital industry promises a host of fresh avenues to explore and expand. The soon-to-arrive 5G networks will only work as an important factor for OTT platforms to scale further heights. Prime Video India spokesperson: “2020 has been a very exciting year for us at Prime Video India – at a time when a large section of customers, looking for high quality entertainment, are turning to streaming video - we launched 18 direct-to-digital movies (across 5 Indian languages) and 8 Indian Amazon Original Series, in addition to several Global Originals and hundreds of licensed and exclusive titles. One of the most consistent trends we observed in 2020 is that great content transcends geographical barriers. Indian stories are traveling across the globe - 1 out of 5 viewers of Indian Originals are from outside India. Both Four More Shots Please! and Made in Heaven were nominated for the International Emmy Awards, a testimony to local, authentic stories finding a global audience. Our first slate of DTS movies received close to 50% (and sometimes more) viewership for titles in Indian languages from customers outside the home states. Our Bollywood direct-to-service movies were block-buster hits - Gulabo Sitabo and Shakuntala Devi have been our most-watched movies on Prime Video in India as well as the most-watched Hindi/ Bollywood Movie outside India. Localized content not only helps us remain relevant, relatable but eventually also helps in widening audience reach - we also see global shows going deeper in India. We released Parasite with Hindi subs in India and that opened viewership to a whole new audience. We also dubbed some of our popular Global Amazon Originals like Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan and more recently, the second season of the The Boys in Indian languages, leading to more people discovering and watching these titles. This gives us an insight that customers are ready to watch content that has originated from any part of the world, if the story and the characters resonate with them.”

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