The premium video-on-demand (VOD) category, driven by advertising and subscriptions, generated $1.04 billion in revenues during the first half of 2024, a 38% increase from $760 million in the same period in 2023. Local content accounted for 86% of premium VOD engagement, with live sports and local drama and romance leading demand.
Sports content attracted the highest number of unique viewers, with 9 of the top 15 titles being sports-related, 6 of which were BCCI events. Cricket stood out, as IPL 2024 and the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024 were the top two sports properties driving significant viewership.
These insights come from the latest analysis by ampd, a digital measurement platform owned by Media Partners Asia (MPA), which tracks consumption and engagement across India's digital economy, including VOD.
In H1 2024, a total of 8 trillion minutes were streamed across online video platforms in India. YouTube dominated with 92% of all online video consumption, while premium platforms—including AVOD, freemium, and SVOD services—accounted for the remaining 8%. Among premium platforms, freemium services led with 92% of the 645 billion minutes streamed during the same period.
Jio Cinema, Netflix, and Disney+ Hotstar were the top contributors to premium VOD revenue, accounting for nearly 70% of total category revenues. Jio Cinema led the category with a 36% revenue share, while Netflix led pure-play SVOD monetization with a 38% share.
Premium VOD ad revenue in H1 2024 was driven by Jio Cinema and Disney+ Hotstar, leveraging marquee cricket events like IPL and the ICC World Cup. After a challenging 2023, total SVOD subscriptions rebounded from 110 million to 120 million in H1 2024. India’s affluent audience base continues to expand, with Netflix and Prime Video capitalising on this trend through investments in local content, accounting for nearly 70% of SVOD revenue in the period. Jio Cinema’s affordable plan has further broadened the SVOD audience, encouraging more users to pay for streaming.
MPA India Vice President Mihir Shah commented, “Subscriber growth will continue in 2H 2024, driven by partnerships with telcos, pay-TV operators, and OEMs. With the festive season approaching, advertising spending is expected to be strong in Q4 2024. However, with no major sports events, spending will shift to non-fiction shows on premium VOD platforms, while a significant portion will return to high-reach UGC platforms. Netflix and Prime Video have a steady stream of content planned for H2 2024. For freemium platforms, entertainment spending is returning through new advertising-friendly formats like TV++, similar to daily TV soap operas with 40-120+ episodes per season, which attract new users and drive engagement with lower budgets.”
Sports content attracted the highest number of unique viewers, with 9 of the top 15 titles being sports-related, 6 of which were BCCI events. Cricket stood out, as IPL 2024 and the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024 were the top two sports properties driving significant viewership.
These insights come from the latest analysis by ampd, a digital measurement platform owned by Media Partners Asia (MPA), which tracks consumption and engagement across India's digital economy, including VOD.
In H1 2024, a total of 8 trillion minutes were streamed across online video platforms in India. YouTube dominated with 92% of all online video consumption, while premium platforms—including AVOD, freemium, and SVOD services—accounted for the remaining 8%. Among premium platforms, freemium services led with 92% of the 645 billion minutes streamed during the same period.
Jio Cinema, Netflix, and Disney+ Hotstar were the top contributors to premium VOD revenue, accounting for nearly 70% of total category revenues. Jio Cinema led the category with a 36% revenue share, while Netflix led pure-play SVOD monetization with a 38% share.
Premium VOD ad revenue in H1 2024 was driven by Jio Cinema and Disney+ Hotstar, leveraging marquee cricket events like IPL and the ICC World Cup. After a challenging 2023, total SVOD subscriptions rebounded from 110 million to 120 million in H1 2024. India’s affluent audience base continues to expand, with Netflix and Prime Video capitalising on this trend through investments in local content, accounting for nearly 70% of SVOD revenue in the period. Jio Cinema’s affordable plan has further broadened the SVOD audience, encouraging more users to pay for streaming.
MPA India Vice President Mihir Shah commented, “Subscriber growth will continue in 2H 2024, driven by partnerships with telcos, pay-TV operators, and OEMs. With the festive season approaching, advertising spending is expected to be strong in Q4 2024. However, with no major sports events, spending will shift to non-fiction shows on premium VOD platforms, while a significant portion will return to high-reach UGC platforms. Netflix and Prime Video have a steady stream of content planned for H2 2024. For freemium platforms, entertainment spending is returning through new advertising-friendly formats like TV++, similar to daily TV soap operas with 40-120+ episodes per season, which attract new users and drive engagement with lower budgets.”
