The India Web Fest Season 6 witnessed a special set of individuals coming in from different facets of the entertainment space, as they came together to talk about some burning topics that shape the way the industry functions.

One of the more important topics that was a part of the conversation was talking about the business of OTT and decoding the way ahead. The session was moderated by Parul Menghani, Founder & CEO, Good Ants Media, and in conversation with Nitin Burman, Senior Vice President & Head, Non-Subscription Revenue, Aha; Venugopal Iyengar, COO, Digital, Planetcast; Neeta Thakare, Senior Vice President, Broadcast Business Operations, QYou Media India; Akshay Bardapurkar, Head & Founder, Planet Marathi Group; Zafar Sawant, Chief Product Officer, OTT Play; and Rohan Chincholi, Chief Digital Officer, Havas Media India.

Here are excerpts from the conversation-

Parul: I think we see the OTT business right now, and the entire space is booming, of course, because data is cheaper and many of us are online across different tiers. This makes it harder for platforms in the OT space to cater to such a wide, diverse audience because almost every single person is on digital platforms now.

That’s what’s going to make our entire conversation today very interesting—there are going to be very different perspectives, from marketing to content to the business of content, and of course, regional differences. So, we’ll jump right into it. My first question, Rohan, I’ll start with you: What is the ideal business plan for OT from a strategy perspective? I think that would be a good way to set the base.

Rohan: Yeah, I think taking your points forward, we have just under 100 million subscribers on OTT platforms. With the low cost of data—India has the second-lowest cost per GB—and about 72% of the country owning a smartphone, apps are free, which is important to note.

From an agency perspective, when we look at investments for our brands, we need to focus on where the audience is. When we talk about strategy, it’s largely about investing in the right platforms that resonate with the people and the genres they are consuming. For an agency, it’s about finding the right media mix that helps reach the relevant audience.

Over the last five years, OT platforms have increasingly helped us stay relevant to the brands. This is important because there was a time when large platforms like YouTube or search dominated, but now, with the growth of content creation by influencers, creators, and actors coming to OT platforms, this is where the audience is. One of the core elements of our strategy is not only investing in media, like ad spots, CPMs, VTRs, and viewability but also looking at what form of content integration works best.

It’s a mix of everything for us. And if we talk about a “hero genre,” cricket works exceptionally well. If you invest in cricket, you get the masses. Our large-scale investments on behalf of our brands in cricket have made us successful. The Korean space is also doing very well.

There are 57 recognized OT platforms in India, and each stands for some form of content or the other.

Smita: You know, Rohan has spoken more from a business perspective. But when you talk about OTT or anything related, it’s really more about content. The previous panel emphasized a lot of content, and I think Akshay can take this up from me later.

From a content perspective, the key question is: What are you going to show? Will it be regional content? What genre will you focus on? I’m not sure if a specific genre really works—it’s the quality of the content that matters. It could be real-life drama, comedy, or, as mentioned earlier when Monica said that Kapil Sharma worked beautifully for them.

So, from that perspective, while the business side is important, it has to go hand in hand with the type of content you’re delivering. I’m sure Nitin and Akshay can take this discussion further from here and elaborate more on this.

Nitin: I guess with OTT coming into the picture, the first major change is that it has given consumers a choice. Previously, you had to watch programs at a fixed time, and if you missed it, you didn’t know what else to watch. Now, OT has opened up boundaries. Today, you have access to any kind of content, whether it’s Korean, Chinese, or anything else. The dubbing these days is so well done that you don’t even feel like you’re watching foreign content. It’s not like 10 years ago when you could easily tell it was dubbed content and joke about it. This has given consumers a lot more flexibility.

Second, OTT has made content the hero. In the past, if it was a big hero movie, people would automatically go and watch it. But today, even big hero movies are flopping. Why? Because people are waiting for a cinematic experience and an outstanding story. These are the things people now look forward to. If they don’t see that in the movie’s promo, they won’t waste their money on theatres. Instead, they’ll wait for it to come to OTT and watch it in the comfort of their living rooms on a big connected TV. And with TV sizes increasing—up to 85 to 100 inches in some homes—it’s delivering a near-cinematic experience.

So, I think OTT has truly made content the hero, and that’s what it has delivered to consumers.

Parul: One of the things I’d like you to shed some light on, Akshay, is the overall strategy, especially as a leading regional OT platform yourself. What is the strategy you have in mind? Also, keep in mind the subscription aspect, because a lot of this content is no longer free like it used to be. While we have both quality and quantity, it’s still coming at a cost. So, what do you consider when it comes to planning for Planet Marathi?

Akshay: When it comes to Planet Marathi, over the last three years, being the only platform in the Marathi space, we’ve tried various approaches. We’ve implemented great marketing strategies, improved our tech, and more. But one thing that stands out, as my co-panelists have mentioned, is that nothing beats the content itself.

In the Marathi space, you don’t have the luxury of creating content that doesn’t draw audiences. For example, if you produce a web series or a film that costs around 2 to 3 crores and doesn’t attract viewers, it’s a significant loss. So, you have to be very careful about the kind of content you create.

Maharashtra is the second-largest state, both linguistically and population-wise. It’s a diverse region with areas like Marathwada, Paschim Maharashtra, Vidarbha, and others, each with its own culture and stories. You have to go hyperlocal to understand the audience. For instance, if there was a major crime in Vidarbha 20-30 years ago, and people are still curious about it, creating content based on that real story would resonate strongly in that region.

In the past, we’ve seen some Marathi filmmakers focus on Mumbai-based stories, like the film “Lalbaug Parel,” but it didn’t do well in rural Maharashtra. Why? Because many people in those regions have never even been to Mumbai. So, you have to be region-specific in your content.

If you want to create something with broader appeal across the state, or even beyond, then you need to look at larger productions like “Animal” or similar films in whatever language works best. So, for me, the strategy for regional content, especially Marathi, is to identify content that people truly want to watch and connect with.

Parul: And I think, anybody can add to that.

Zafar: Yes, I represent OT Play, which is an aggregator platform. We focus on a metric called C by LTV (Customer Acquisition Cost to Lifetime Value). There are four key factors we consider.

First is COGS, the cost of goods sold, since we acquire content from various OT platforms. It’s important to consider the price point at which we acquire the content.

Second is CAC, the Customer Acquisition Cost. We need to promote ourselves and run campaigns to acquire users, so we track how much it costs us to bring in each new customer.

Third is ARPU, or Average Revenue Per User. This looks at the price we are charging customers and the bundle pricing strategy we use.

Fourth is Renewals, which I believe is the most crucial factor. Retaining customers and renewing subscriptions is essential for long-term success.

So, to summarize, we focus on four factors: COGS (content cost), CAC (customer acquisition), ARPU (pricing), and renewals. These factors together help us determine the C by LTV ratio. In startup circles, it’s said that you need a C by LTV ratio between 2 and 3 for the business to be sustainable. We’re constantly working on all these factors to ensure our business remains viable and sustainable.

Venugopal: Coming at it purely from the tech side, I’m very intrigued by the question of original versus acquired content. When I think of a longer time horizon and how tech is evolving, I believe that acquired content is becoming a myth. You must have original content.

Today, what sets you apart? If you’re a TV channel, you have the whole infrastructure—transmission and broadcasting—and you think you can rely on acquired content to keep things running. But that’s not going to last much longer. Look at the kinds of content creators out there—brands are creating their content. We’re even talking about creating content for brands, while brands themselves are producing content on platforms like Instagram and TikTok.

The creation of original content is going to become mandatory. If you’re depending on acquired content, you’re headed for trouble. The platform advantage that you have today is already fading. What does it take to launch your platform now? It’s practically off-the-shelf. That’s the beauty of tech today. The cost of hosting has dropped to a fraction, and the cost of CDN (Content Delivery Network) has decreased by tenfold. Anyone with a mobile phone camera can create content and publish it.

There is no more room to hide behind acquired content. If you do, it’s a dangerous strategy that won’t last. This shift is happening largely because tech has removed the barriers—there’s no need for massive infrastructure to distribute content anymore.

Watch the full video below-