There is a stiff competition among all the major online streaming players like Netflix and Amazon for increasing their subscriber base through localized content production.
Indian digital media industry is growing at a rapid pace, thanks to the smartphone boom and the increasing penetration of the internet. According to an estimate by EY, the market is estimated to grow to Rs20, 000 crore by 2020.
Amazon has collaborated with director-producer Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions, while Netflix tied up with Red Chillies Entertainment, actor Shah Rukh Khan’s venture.
Amazon Prime Video is better than Netflix in terms of native content and it has an impressive library which is categorized by languages such as Hindi, Bengali, Marathi, Tamil, and Telugu.
Sundance Film Festival, the largest independent film festival in the United States has turned into a good platform for online streaming services and they are spending big bucks on buying new movie rights. At this year's Sundance Film Festival, Netflix acquired the worldwide rights for legal documentary Nobody Speak: Hulk Hogan, Gawker and Trials of a Free Press.
While Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos is tripling his company’s original content budget, Netflix plans to spend $6 billion in 2017.
Amazon earned a unique distinction yesterday when Manchester by the Sea became the first movie from a streaming service to be nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award.
In India, Amazon and Netflix are collaborating with leading directors for creating original content. Apart from collaborations, they are also adding several innovative features on their platform to enhance the overall streaming experience. After introducing offline support last year Netflix today rolled out SD card support to its download feature.
Streaming has already changed the rules for television and the future of cinema halls look bleak. The day is not far when new releases will be streamed directly to people’s living rooms.