The heads of some of the world’s largest media groups outlined their plans for growth in the market at a media conference held by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Mumbai.
The conference is organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). Kevin Vaz, Chairman of the Media and Entertainment Committee of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry and CEO of entertainment streaming company Viacom18, stressed the importance of sports in the Indian market at a panel on navigating the future of the media and entertainment industry. Streamer JioCinema is a subsidiary of Viacom18. The company won the rights to the hugely popular Indian Premier League cricket tournament in 2022 and streamed it for free on JioCinema in 2023, winning millions of viewers from rival Disney+ Hotstar in the process.
“Cricket is one of the biggest reach factors in this country. It’s the only piece of content that works the length and breadth of this country, and advertisers appreciate that because they can get instant reach, they can reach consumers north and south with their message at the same time, and they’re ready to go.” “To pay for this type of content,” Vaz said. “It makes sense for sports to be on a paywall. When sports have such a reach, it’s not ideal for us to try to limit that reach when there are people willing to watch it.
Sandhya Devanathan, Co-Chairman, Media & Entertainment Committee of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, and Vice President and Head, Meta India, outlined the company’s three key priorities – using AI to generate better returns for advertisers as well as users for more engaging experiences; Boosting Reels, the popular short-form video format, which is a big driver of growth on the platform, both in terms of user engagement and how businesses use it; And also business messaging, as 60% of Indians use WhatsApp.
“Success will depend on having a deep understanding of changing consumer preferences, identifying who the customer is, and then being able to… Design a piece of content or story that is relevant to them, that delights and inspires them, and that they find endearing.
Speaking about the fact that most Indians are now watching content on their phones, Nohwar added: “The new dynamic emerging is that we focus on ‘when’ and linear network TV has not traditionally focused on that. By ‘when’ I mean that there are moments of consumption that happen while waiting for Getting on the plane, while you’re in the elevator going up 30 floors while you’re waiting to pick up your kid from school. And in those moments that extend from 30 seconds to probably five or six minutes, do you have an attractive form factor that’s not just user-generated? So, it would be What’s important is for networks to think about making derivatives of their traditional content. And figure out how you can create moments of truth with consumers who are now increasingly accustomed to watching content on different platforms and TV and create content that’s relevant to them in those little moments and snacks. Maybe that also needs to be tracked , so they can return to linear television, to watch episodic 24-minute and 50-minute shows.
The service offers SVOD, TVOD and via Channel Option, a collection of about 20 other options for content from across India and the world, said Sushant Sriram, regional head, Amazon Prime Video. “When we think about how to serve India, the foundation we go back to is that customers will always value great value, great selection and convenience,” Sriram said.