I believe OTT is the future of entertainment consumption and it is here to stay. OTT’s dream run may seem to have slowed down a bit because of the sheer number of platforms that have sprung up. More people are moving to streaming platforms these days thanks to consolidation of subscriptions.
Original content has been scarce and it has been the big movies that have driven growth for the platforms. Once the platforms start churning out stories the audience relates to, the growth will be astronomical.
There are almost 50 TV channels catering just to the malayalam audience and thriving in the industry across GEC, news and music. The story is similar for other South Indian languages as well. This clearly shows the huge demand there is for entertainment and a clear sign of the growth curve OTT platforms will achieve in the near future as more and more people are cutting the cords and adopting digital media.
Regionalisation has led to more people being aware of the digital industry. With faster internet technology like 5G on the horizon and affordable internet prices, there will always be a demand for content. It’s just the beginning of a dream run and not the end.
(The author is CEO of Malayalam OTT platform Mainstream Video.)
