India’s OTT industry, once a beacon of rapid growth, experienced a massive slowdown in the past year. The heady days of a 20% expansion in the OTT audience from 2021 to 2022 gave way to a more modest 13.5% growth, signalling a departure from the previously charted trajectory.
The demand for online streaming in India grew a lot because of big shows partnering with major platforms and OTT platforms investing a lot in original content. The COVID-19 lockdowns also made people want more video content. But, the growth couldn’t last, and it slowed down recently.
A big reason for this change is that the market got too crowded. The fast growth during the pandemic wasn’t something that could continue for a long time. The 20% growth in 2022 was a quick increase, and now it’s back to a more regular speed of growth i.e. only 13.5%. There are also uncertainties about what will happen to existing platforms and the possibility of new ones entering the scene, making things more complicated.
In conclusion, the dip in OTT growth in India reflects a natural progression from the initial pandemic-driven surge. Until or unless the Indian OTT platforms do not do something extraordinary in terms of content and marketing, this decay will carry on, ultimately eating up the entire OTT market.