Netflix Girds for Price War in India Streaming Battleground

Netflix and its rivals are facing a price war in India as a surge in the cost of video viewing on mobile phones threaten to slow demand for streaming as a major growth market globally.

The country's three wireless carriers increased data tariffs by 41 per cent earlier this month, leaving some customers in India where most streaming is done over the phone, including entertainment services such as Netflix, Apple's TV + service But less is spent - the month that first started - and local competitors.

Cheap broadband, well-established film culture and a huge English-speaking population have helped make India an attractive streaming battleground, with Netflix targeting 100 million subscribers in the country, this year's subscriber base. About 25 times. But the rise in data costs, coupled with a widespread slowdown in the economy, may make customers more vulnerable to paying for content, as players such as Apple and Amazon Prime try to gain a foothold in the market.

"This is a challenge that will affect growth, as mobile data boom has been a big factor in India," said Utkarsh Sinha, managing director of Boutique Insurance Bank. "Indian user has used water recklessly on a large scale."

Netflix is ​​already trying to move on with this move, by slashing prices for subscribers for at least three months at least. Most streaming services in the country, including Apple TV +, Amazon Prime and Walt Disney's Hotstar, have also offered discount deals this year and are priced lower in other markets as well. Apple's new TV + service, for example, sells for about $ 1.40 a month (about Rs 100) in India, compared to the U.S. And is around $ 5 (about Rs. 360) in Japan.

Netflix said in a statement that its users can value the flexibility that being able to pay for a few months at a time. A spokesperson in India said, "As always, this is a test and we will introduce it more widely when people find it useful." Representatives of Amazon, Apple and Hotstar in India declined to comment.

"As all platforms become equally competitive on content, pricing will be an important lever to attract customers and encourage churn," said Sinha. "Netflix has introduced an India-only price, and Amazon is already subsidizing its flagship offer through a package deal."

There is already a jackfruit streaming market under price pressure, combined with the promotion of online video services in a country of 1.3 million people by some 30 operators. Liu, a small streaming player run by the media arm of Hong Kong-based PCCW Ltd, recently decided to exit the market as it lacked the cash to challenge larger rivals, India's Economic Times reported 16 In December, an executive was quoted as saying, 'Vi. T name. Mubi, a U.K.-based curated streaming service, became the latest to take a crack at the market.

Mihir Shah, India's vice-president of Media Partners Asia in Mumbai, said that while the impact of higher mobile phone tariffs would permeate the industry, high-income Indians would easily get slightly higher-priced services for wireless access. Free services - such as Beetkens' Tiktok and social media video sites will take a more direct hit as it becomes more expensive to watch on wireless devices, he said.

Overall, streaming services will continue to grow, even as costs rise, he said.

While big streaming brands are competing on price, they are also spending money on content to offer more to India's audience.

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings has said that the company wants to become "more Indian" in its plan to spend as much as $ 420 million (about Rs 2,991.8 crore) to produce local TV and movies. Disney's Hotstar has prepared millions of active users for exclusive sports programming, especially cricket, the country's most popular sport. For its part, Apple is offering a series in its TV + based on Shantaram, the best novel about a convicted Australian bank robber and heroin addict who runs away from prison and lands in Mumbai's slums.