The war for original content continues its course, and the fronts remain clear: the big traditional media, which until now had dominated the Indian audiovisual industry without issues, are facing streaming giants. According to ExpressVPN’s report on 2022 streaming trends, the odds are starting to change in favor of streaming services. In fact, Netflix held market share for more than 46% of streaming originals  in India this year. Let’s find out more about it.

Streaming vs Traditional Media

As per the latest info on streaming trends in India and worldwide, we can easily observe an upward trend in the budgets of all major streaming services. It is no longer a question of resources, as everyone is demonstrating their economic potential. Now it will be the quantity and quality of the original content, the most critical battlefield in this exciting war for control of contemporary entertainment.

How much are streaming platforms investing?

Netflix is the sixth highest revenue earner among all entertainment-based companies in the world. It’s planning to increase its investment in India even more and commission shows in multiple regional languages as well. Netflix already has a privileged space that extends to nearly 200 countries around the world. Its name is synonymous with home cinema, and its aspirations to win film awards and sign productions with some of the best directors across the globe should worry more than one in the industry.

Does Netflix have a streaming monopoly?

No, not everything is going to be a bed of roses for Netflix. The competitors are coming strong, and they are not just the traditional companies. There are those who come to stand up to it on its own ground. This is the clear case of Amazon Prime Video, which has announced that it is going to double its investment in India over the next five years. The streaming platform has announced the launch of 40 new titles in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil (the existing content is available in multiple Indian languages already).

While Amazon Prime Video and Netflix spent over half a billion dollars over the last year on content, there are other major players in the market as well. Streaming platforms like Disney+ Hotstar, Zee5, Sony LIV, Voot, MXPlayer etc. are also going to significantly boost their presence in India’s streaming ecosystem. Disney+ Hotstar also broadcasts a lot of live sporting events in India such as Formula 1 and the tennis Grand Slams.

What seems to be the future of streaming in India?

Homegrown streaming service providers provide a lot of content that the international streaming giants are unable to provide. Indian reality shows such as Bigg Boss, Lock Upp and Shark Tank India are extremely popular among viewers and the homegrown platforms have a major edge in this category. Another big streaming hit is the Amitabh Bacchan hosted Kaun Banega Crorepati which brings an incredible number of views to Sony LIV.

Daily soaps like Anupamaa and Yashomati Maiyaa Ke Nandlala are also major viewership magnets among the Indian public.

The streaming trends in India are really looking up. A large amount of competition is also going to push the platforms to create extremely enjoyable content. However, at the moment we can only collect the data that comes to us from the platforms, and speculate on what the future of original content will be in the Indian entertainment sector.

Is the continued increase in the original streaming content budget a bubble that threatens to burst? Perhaps a fight to see who has the biggest pocket? Will the streaming companies upstage the traditional media sources very soon? Or will the traditional media sources invest in their own streaming platforms to retain their footing in the market? Only time will tell. One thing is certain, it won’t take very long to find out.