New Delhi: One of the leading televisions & digital networks in India, Zee Media Corporation Limited today announced the launch of their first-ever OTT Awards. The awards will witness the first-ever simulcast on over 30 television and digital platforms, garnering 469 million views across television channels and websites. The awards will be attended by crème-de-la-crème of the entertainment industry, with an astute jury in various fields of entertainment, along with the Zee Media management.
It is important to note that, categories will not be restricted to movies and web series only. The focus will also be on alternative digital media content. Apart from the awards and on-stage entertainment, there will be panel discussions that will be live-streamed on digital platforms, allowing the viewers to ask questions to the panelists, making the whole viewing experience more immersive.
On the announcement of these awards, Anindya Khare, Marketing Head, ZEE Media commented, “With the change in viewing habits and the increased consumption of content, we feel the ZEE Media OTT awards will do justice to the content creators, actors, the teams behind building successful shows, to continue doing the same and bring out quality content for the viewers. The changing landscape around content asks for newer ways to showcase and gratify the efforts put into making the complete OTT ecosystem a success.”
Talking about the awards from a revenue center point of view, Gaurav Verma, Chief Revenue Officer, Zee Media opined, “OTT is the next big thing for years to come as the entertainment industry witnesses a paradigm shift in the way content is consumed by the audience. To lead the way and become the pioneers in the award space, it gives us immense pleasure to bring these awards to the consumers, to gauge their level of interest, and take the next steps from there. We are creating a new platform to showcase the best talent from the world of OTT. ”
Adding to the same, Manoj Jagyasi, Chief Revenue Officer, Zee Media said, “It is important that we notice and act on the changing consumption trends of the viewers, consumers, and advertisers in order to be present in all relevant spaces at the given time. New initiatives are always more lucrative for advertisers as they arrest the attention of the viewers. ZEE Media OTT award, similarly, is a new and exciting proposition for our viewers which will be well accepted by them due to our unbiased approach to the awards.”
India is currently the world’s fastest-growing OTT market and is all set to emerge as the world’s sixth-largest by 2024. There are currently about 40 providers of over–the–top media services (OTT) in India, which distribute streaming media over the Internet. Between March and November 2019, around 30 million internet users came online for the first time from rural areas, showing a steep growth in the consumer base for the OTT platforms. The time spent on OTT streaming has increased significantly, where the content consumption across most platforms, including OTT, podcast, gaming has witnessed an average increase of 30-60% since early March.
