Covid surge: Are OTT platforms set to go on an overdrive, yet again?

Last year, the OTTs were a clear winner and since things seems to be going in the same direction, it has raised the question whether OTT platforms will go in a fast track mode and churn out more content than planned?

The sudden spike in Covid-19 cases in the country and the subsequent restrictions imposed on shootings and release of films in theatres, have once again put the spotlight back on the digital space. Last year, the OTT platforms were a clear winner, and since things seem to be going in the same direction, it has raised the question whether they will go in a fast track mode and churn out more content than planned?

The stills of upcoming OTT releases Dhamaka and Bhuj; The Pride of India.

Divya Dixit, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Direct Revenue & Analytics at ALTBalaji, says, “While Covid redefined how content will be consumed, the year 2021 is sure to chart new business alliances for us as well as revenue models for platforms to acquire direct subscriptions. Due to the Covid-19 impact, the next billion internet users are coming from the Hindi heartlands and we are riding that wave.”

She further adds that the OTT platform’s line-up for the next three months has already been in shot and is in the post-production phase.

“Some of the biggest shows that are in our pipeline for the next three months are Mai Hero Boll Raha Hu, His Storyy, Puncch Beat season 2, Cartel, Broken but Beautiful 3 as well as Farrey. We are ramping up our production capabilities to deliver quality content for our audience. We do not plan on acquiring films for now, as we truly believe in the content stickiness of our originals and fiction franchises that help us drive the user base predominantly,” Dixit elucidates.

Filmmaker Ashish R shukla, who has helmed web projects such as Bahut Hua Sammaan, Bicchoo Ka Khel and upcoming series Candy, foresees a definite surge in OTT content again.

“This year people are a lot more confident about releasing their products on OTT. Unlike last year, there wouldn’t be too much thought given on it. I do think that we’ll see a lot more film release on the web, which were originally meant for theatres, and this year we might see some very big films, too. When a film comes on web, there’s no latakti talwar ki Friday karna hai ya weekend karna hai. Even if it is a ₹4 crore film or a ₹40 crore film, both are thumbnails of equal size,” notes Shukla.

Netflix, too has got a huge line-up slated for this year in terms of original as well as licensed content. “We have already announced 40 titles and if there are opportunities like last year where we got films such as Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl and Raat Akeli Hai, we will continue to do that,” a source informs.

While there’s likely to be a surge in demand that might happen soon because of the situation, some feel that this time around, the OTT platforms will be extra careful about what they acquire.

“A lot of platforms made a few wrong buying decisions over the last one year. While it is a very hard to ascribe a value to a product on OTT, which was meant for theatrical, obviously there has to be a fair value,” says Siddharth Anand Kumar, Vice President, TV & Films, Saregama, while adding that at Yoodle, they have a few direct-to-OTT releases but till now there has been no communication about delivering those product on an urgent basis.

“For now, there has been no request from the platforms to deliver content before time. I can understand how there would be a little bit of anxiety if the lockdown becomes more stringent, but I don’t see any reason for anxiety as yet,” Kumar adds.