Amazon Prime Video Will Produce More Regional Content!

Recently Amazon Prime Video overtook Netflix in the country to become the largest overseas digital entertainment provider, and now the company is all set to expand further in the Indian market. The platform already boasts a wide variety of Hindi and Bollywood content. Now it plans to add more regional content for a bigger share in the rapidly growing online streaming market in India.

Amazon has already created a bunch of original Hindi series for its Prime customers and offers a huge library of Bollywood films which includes movies in over five Indian languages. The company is giving a tough fight to the local competitors with its cheaper annual plan and premium services.

Amazon Prime In India

The Amazon Prime service was launched in India roughly a year back and currently charges an annual fee Rs. 999/- to offer services like faster deliveries, early access to deals on Amazon India and a free subscription to its streaming video content and recently-launched music streaming service.

The US-based e-commerce company is looking to expand more in India, as it remains one of the key markets for Amazon’s global ambitions. The Indian entertainment market has grown to more than $31 billion in the last two years, from $22.7 billion in 2016.

Cheaper Data & Free Streaming Services

The data revolution brought on by Jio spurred a huge rise in streaming online content in India, and soon it became world’s fastest growing internet services market. The recent growth has turned India into a battleground for the big international streaming service providers.

The content war between digital giants like Amazon and Netflix has intensified, as they look to grow beyond a saturated U.S. home market. The cheaper data has transformed the digital market in India, and Jio has in a forced the Indian telecom industry to bring down the pricing immensely.

Apart from the top video streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hotstar, India has now over 30 online streaming providers who are offering a variety of local and regional content. Most of these provide popular sports like cricket and football with free local language entertainment services.

Netflix has recently announced a number of new projects in India, but Amazon has a significantly higher amount of local content. It has already produced cricket shows, sitcoms, reality shows and stand-up comedy specials for the Indian audience.

On the other hand, Netflix has focused on the Indian English-speaking customers, while Hotstar has focused on live cricket and local daily soaps along with a huge collection of Bollywood movies.

The Pricing Game

Pricing remains a major factor, as Netflix starts at Rs 500/- a month and Hotstar charges Rs 200/- a month and also offers a wide range of free services. Amazon Prime offers the best value for money with a bouquet of services at a sustainably cheaper price of Rs 999/- per year.

Amazon leads the pack with its add-on premium services for its shopping site, which is a major advantage over the competitors. Now with more focus on regional content, the company will find newer spaces to expand. The company plans to start with South-Indian films in Tamil and Telugu, and will later broaden its portfolio to include more Indian languages.