See, ads are annoying.
There was a time when OTT platforms felt like an escape. No interruptions, no logos dancing at the bottom of the screen, no sudden ad breaks reminding you of cable TV. Just stories, characters, and a sense of quiet continuity.
Today, that promise is fading.
Across India, viewers are repeatedly complaining that ads on platforms like Prime Video and SonyLIV are getting longer, louder, and far more frequent. The worst part? These are not even free, ad-supported tiers. People who pay are being asked to “adjust”… A word every Indian consumer already hears too often.
And this creeping intrusion has a real consequence: a shift in audience loyalty.
Netflix, by comparison, still feels like a clean, uninterrupted space. Whatever its flaws, missing basic features like native sync play, region-restricted titles, or its experimental push into games, the one thing it has protected fiercely is the viewer’s experience. When you hit play on Netflix, you know you’ll watch your episode without being dragged into a 45-second ad that wasn’t there last month.
That matters more than platforms realize.
In a country where attention is shrinking and competition is brutal, OTT platforms can’t afford to become cable TV with better buffering. If ads continue to pop up every few minutes, users will do what they’ve always done: move. They’ll shift to Netflix, or to Plex, or to piracy, anywhere their storytelling isn’t interrupted by a shampoo commercial they’ve already seen six times.
Streaming was supposed to be the future. But if platforms keep prioritizing ad revenue over viewer experience, they may be handing over India’s OTT crown to the one service that still respects the sanctity of the play button.