Online Video streaming platforms(OTT platforms) have become extremely popular in India in the last few years. This is because digital world has become far more comfortable when it comes to entertainment . All you need to do is lie down in your pyjamas and just binge watch your favourite movies or web series on these online video streaming platforms.
Also because there is abundance of media content that people will hardly get bored of watching and also as it needs least efforts and you can watch anything and everything by just subscribing to it and enjoy being a couch potato with just a click.
This article lists the best online video streaming platforms in India which you can simply subscribe to and start binge watching
- Netflix
- Amazon Prime
- Disney+Hotstar
- ALT Balaji
- Zee5
- Voot
- Sony LIV
- BIG Flix
- Eros Now
- Jio Cinema
So now lets dive deeper into these top digital content media platforms or online video streaming platforms (OTT platforms) in India :
1. Netflix
An American media service provider and production company, Netflix was founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California and is headquartered in Los Gatos, California.
Netflix was introduced in India in the year 2016 and with this it has started building its local slate with its first Indian Original Series ‘Sacred Games’.
a) Content on NETFLIX
The online streaming offers a library of television shows and films including those which are produced in-house.
Genres include -International, Independent, Comedies, Action, Children and Family, Dramas, Romance, Thriller, Sci-Fi and Fantasy, Crime, Horror, Hollywood, Bollywood, Award-winning, Documentaries, Stand-up comedy, Disney, Anime, History, Science and Nature and Audio Description.
Languages include – Majorly English and Hindi and regional languages include Punjabi, Bengali, Marathi, Telugu, Malayalam and Tamil.
b) Subscription Of Netflix
A new user of Netflix gets first month as a free trial and then has to choose from four plans which it currently offers in India –
- The Mobile Plan costs INR 199 per month
- The Basic Plan costs INR 499 per month
- The Standard Plan costs INR 649 per month
- The Premium Plan costs INR 799 per month
c) Subscribers of Netflix
Overall, Netflix has 11 million subscribers in India.
d) Netflix Availability as an app
Netflix is available as an app which can be installed and subscribed through the mobile plan costing INR 199/month.
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2. Amazon Prime
Amazon Prime is a paid subscription service which is offered by Amazon that gives users access to the various services they are providing.
Amazon announced the creation of Amazon Prime in the year 2005 and it made its way to India in July, 2016.
a) Content on Amazon Prime
Prime Video and Prime Music both offer a variety of content to kill your boredom. Prime Video especially, has a variety of content with a library of movies and web series along with Amazon originals.
Genres include – Drama, Action and Adventure, Romance, Comedy, Thriller and Horror majorly.
Languages include – Major content is in English and Hindi language along with regional languages which includes Telegu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Punjabi, Marathi, Bengali and Gujarati.
b) Subscription of Amazon Prime
The first month is a trial month therefore, free of cost for the new users. After the free month trial, to enjoy Prime benefits, you can purchase Prime membership by purchasing –
- The Monthly Plan of INR 129
- The Annual Plan of INR 999
c) Subscribers of Amazon Prime
Overall, Prime Video has 13 million subscribers in India.
d) Prime Video Availability as an app
Prime Video can be installed as an app.
3. Disney+Hotstar
Also simply known as ‘Hotstar’ is an Indian OTT media streaming service that was launched in February 2015 as Hotstar and later changed to Disney+Hotstar from April 2020.
It is owned by Novi Digital Entertainment, a subsidiary of Star India.
a) Content on Disney+Hotstar
In India, the service is operated both as an ad-free supported service and two subscription-based tiers. The ad-supported service includes access to selected Indian films and Star-series after their broadcast. Along with that, there is access to Hotstar original series.
Genres include – Romance, Drama, Thriller, Lifestyle, Reality, Comedy, Crime, Talk Show, Awards, Mythology, Science, Travel, Wildlife, Documentaries and Sports along with Horror.
Languages include – Majorly Hindi, the regional languages include Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Marathi and Bengali.
b) Subscription of Disney Hotstar
The new users are given a free month trial before the subscription period starts. It features two paid subscription tiers –
- The ‘VIP’ tier that only focuses on domestic programmes and sports content costing INR 399 annually.
- The ‘Premium’ tier featuring premium international films and television series costing –
- INR 299 monthly
- INR 1499 annually
c) Subscribers of Disney+Hotstar
There are overall a whooping 350 million users of Hotstar
d) Disney+Hotstar Availability as an app
Hotstar is available as an app named Disney+Hotstar currently.
4. ALT Balaji
ALTBalaji is an Indian subscription-based video on demand platform which is wholly owned subsidiary of Balaji Telefilms Ltd. Headquartered in Mumbai; it was launched on 16th April 2017.
a) Content on ALT Balaji
They have created original, premium and tailor-made content to the Indians across the globe. The streaming services include more of in-house web-series, selected movies and even acquired and poplar shows for kids.
Genres include – Comedy, Drama, Romance, Thriller, Horror, Crime, Mystery and Kids.
Languages include – Majorly Hindi, other languages include Bengali, Gujarati, Tamil, Punjabi and many more.
b) Subscription of ALT Balaji
ALTBalaji offers :
- Three Months Subscription for INR 100
- Annual Subscription for INR 300
c) Subscribers of ALTBalaji
ALTBalaji has 34 million cumulative subscribers as of 31st march 2020.
d) ALTBalaji Availability as an app
ALTBalaji is available as an app and can be subscribed through the standard subscription plan.
5. Zee5
Launched in India on 14th February 2018, Zee5 is a video-on-demand, OTT streaming service run by Essel Group via its subsidiary Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited.
Headquartered in Mumbai, they provide their services in 190+ countries.
a) Content ON ZEE5
Zee5 content largely focuses on original series, movies and short films. While it was launched, it was launched with content in 12 languages.
Genres include – Drama, Comedy, Romance, Thriller, Mystery, Horror and Fantasy.
Languages include – Along with English and Hindi, other languages are Bengali, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Bhojpuri, Gujarati, Odia and Punjabi.
b) Subscription of ZEE5
There are three subscription plans you can choose from –
- INR 99 Per Month
- INR 599 for 6 Months
- INR 999 for 12 Months
c) Subscribers of ZEE5
Zee5 has 150+ million subscribers worldwide (total).
d) ZEE5 Availability as an app
It offers mobile application on all platforms.
6. Voot
Launched in March 2016, Voot is an Indian subscription video on demand service. Only available in India, it is Viacom 18’s advertising-led video-on-demand platform.
a) Content on VOOT
It includes shows from channels like MTV, Nickelodeon and Colors. It even hosts Bollywood movies and original series for steaming as well as a children segment which is working in Malayalam and Telugu shows.
Genres include – Comedy, Drama, Romance, Travel, Anthology Thriller, Anthology Romance, Psychological Thriller and Kids.
Languages include – Besides English and Hindi, it even includes Kannada, Gujarati, Marathi, Bengali, Tamil and Telegu.
b) Subscription of VOOT
Voot is a completely free service unless you subscribe for ‘Voot Select’ which was introduced in February 2020. Voot original series are made available to only paid subscribers. Voot Select is priced at
- INR 99 Per Month
- INR 499 Per Year
c) Subscribers of VOOT:
Voot has 100 million active monthly users for now.
d) VOOT Availability as an app
It is available as an app for iOS, KaiOS and Android users.
7. Sony LIV
SonyLIV was launched in 2013 and is a part of the network of television channels Sony Pictures Networks India Pvt. Ltd. It is headquartered in Mumbai and serves in UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Bahrain besides India.
a) Content on Sony Liv
Sony Liv’s library consists of 18 years of content from the Sony Channels and along with English, Hindi and regional movies; it also has ‘Anime’ that broadcasts Japanese animations mostly in Japanese audio with English subtitles.
Genres include – The key genres are Comedy, Crime, Drama, Horror and Action.
Languages include – It offers content in English, Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi, Bengali, Tamil, Telegu and even Japanese under ‘Anime’.
b) Subscription of Sony Liv
Currently SonyLIV offers two way subscription –
- INR 99 Per Month
- INR 499 Per Year
c) Subscribers of Sony Liv
SonyLIV currently has reached 25 million views.
d) Sony Liv Availability as an app
It is available as an app in Android version 2.2 and above, iOS and windows phone.
8. BIGFlix
A Reliance Entertainment owned movie on demand service in 2008, BIGFlix is India’s first movie on demand service. It allows you to stream or download movies at any time and terms itself as a ‘Personal Blockbuster Theatre’. It is headquartered in Mumbai.
a) Content on Big Flix
The portal offers a wide range of movies, movie trailers and reviews. The key genres include action, comedy, romance and thriller along with others with movies in several different languages such as Hindi, Telugu, Tamil and Bengali.
b) Subscription of Big Flix
Its subscription is again two way :
- INR 50 Per Month
- INR 500 Per Year
c) Subscribers of Big Flix
They have 4 million registered users currently.
d) Big Flix Availability as an app
It is available as an application for mobile phones, PC, smart televisions and DT.
9. Eros Now
Eros Now is a subscription-based video-on-demand entertainment and media platform which was launched in 2012 and is owned and controlled by Eros Digital.
a) Content on Eros Now
Eros now has more than 12000 titles that include movies, television shows, music videos and 2.5 lakhs music tracks. They even have content that belongs to 10 different languages and also a collection of international shows that are aired on Hum TV and ARY TV. Along with the already existing content, they have even introduced original content in the form of films, series, features and short-films.
b) Subscription of Eros Now
Eros Now has two types of subscription plans –
- Basic Plan at INR 49
- Plus Plan at INR 99 (access to HD streaming and offline downloads)
c) Subscribers of Eros Now
Eros Now has 128 million registered users and 30 million paying subscribers worldwide.
d) Eros Now Availability as an app
It is accessible on most internet-connected screen including mobile, web and smart TVs.
10. Jio Cinema
Jio Cinema is an on demand streaming service with video library offered by Jio. It has recently partnered with Disney India to offer popular Disney movies.
a) Content on Jio Cinema
It offers a variety of movies, TV shows, music videos, Jio shorts, Jio exclusives, documentaries and trailers.
Genres include – Action, Adventure, Animation, Biography, Comedy, Crime, Drama, Documentary, Family, Fantasy, History, Horror, Music, Mystery, Mythology, Reality, Romance, Sports, Thriller and War.
Languages include – Hindi, English, Marathi, Tamil, Kannada, Telegu, Malayalam, Bengali, Gujarati, Punjabi and Bhojpuri.
b) Subscription on Jio Cinema
The Jio Cinema is only for the Jio Users and for now is free of cost.
- Subscribers – By 2018, the number of users were 4.8 million.
c) Jio Cinema Availability as an app
It is available as an application but only accessible by Jio Users but can be accessible through any network if using with the web version.
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