India's OTT Industry in 2024: Innovations, Shifts, and Challenges
India’s OTT 2024 Highlights: Rise of AVOD, Pause Ads, Government-Backed Waves Platform, Decline in SVOD, and Evolving Content Regulation Trends
sheetal
The year 2024 proved to be transformative for India’s OTT industry, with shifting viewer preferences, new monetisation strategies, and the debut of a government-supported platform.
Decline in SVOD and Rise of AVOD
While SVOD platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Disney+ Hotstar maintained a steady stream of fresh content, AVOD (ad-supported video-on-demand) emerged as the dominant segment.
An Ormax report in August revealed that 72% of India’s 547.3 million digital video audience prefer AVOD, while SVOD’s share dropped by 2%, from 153 million in 2023 to 150.6 million in 2024. Total paid subscriptions declined to 99.6 million, and OTT original content consumption dropped by 17%, indicating growing resistance to paid models.
Pause Ads: A Monetisation Innovation
With declining subscriptions, platforms introduced pause ads, a creative, non-intrusive format appearing during video pauses on Connected TVs. Disney+ Hotstar pioneered this in 2024, followed by Zee5 and YouTube India. The strategy enhances user engagement by leveraging moments of active viewer interaction.
The Launch of Waves: A Public OTT Initiative
Prasar Bharati entered the OTT space with Waves, offering a diverse mix of live channels, movies, and on-demand content. Featuring 40 live channels, including Doordarshan, NDTV India, and entertainment networks like 9X Media, the platform also caters to regional audiences with tailored content.
With its focus on free-to-air channels and regional programming, Waves has the potential to redefine India’s OTT landscape, especially for underserved audiences.
Content Regulation Intensifies
In response to growing concerns over content, the Indian government pushed for stricter regulation of OTT platforms in 2024. This reflects ongoing efforts to balance creative freedom with compliance.
The Path Forward
India’s OTT industry in 2024 was shaped by the AVOD surge, innovative ad formats, and the government’s Waves initiative. However, challenges like SVOD declines highlight the complexity of sustaining growth in a competitive and dynamic market.
