MUMBAI: OTT subscription fatigue is a myth in India for now. While subscribing to multiple OTT services, Indian subscribers rely on content as the driving force. There are three primary reasons for this - demand for more content options (42 per cent), satisfying the content needs for an entire family (42 per cent) and all content not being available on one single OTT service (42 per cent).
“Our research findings suggest that the online TV consumer in India sees the value in TV content whether they are paying with greater focus and attention, or with their money,” says Brightcove India sales director Janvi Morzaria.
The study run by Brightcove polled 9,000 participants across nine countries in Asia, including 1,000 consumers in India. It also revealed that 79 per cent of respondents welcomed the hybrid model of OTT. The report said that 35 per cent of respondents are open to a reduced monthly subscription package that serves ads depending on the price, whereas 44 per cent said they would definitely sign up.
25 per cent of Indian respondents wants to pay nothing and watch ads as a trade-off to consuming content while 25 per cent elected to pay a lower fee with limited ads. Just 14 per cent agreed to pay a higher fee to be free from ads and 14 per cent would like an option where they can customise their price and ad packages. 37 per cent of respondents wanted to pay less than $1 per month, 27 per cent would pay $1-$4 per month, and 16 per cent would pay $5-$9 per month.
“Indian consumers do not mind seeing ads as part of their shows, especially if they are getting a deal. 79 per cent of Indian respondents stated that they are open to a hybrid plan of ad-funded SVOD that comes with a reduced price,” she added.
It also emerged that offline downloads, access on mobile, and using less data on mobile were the top three OTT service features most wanted by Indian consumers. 22 per cent of Indian respondents found two ads as an acceptable advertising load per ad break and 13 per cent were open to three ads per break. In addition to that, 67 per cent of respondents were receptive to the idea of shoppable TV.
“OTT service providers should take advantage of this preference and make the advertising experience engaging while limiting ad loads per break. Consumers are now willing to watch ads if they have the option to subscribe to a reduced price plan,” she commented.