Business – Apalya

Eros Now Premium Entertainment Content Available on Vodafone Play!

Vodafone Play, Announced a tie-up with Eros Now, one of the fastest-growing over-the-top (OTT) Bollywood entertainment platforms owned by Eros International Plc (NYSE: EROS) to offer premium movie content to its users.

Vodafone Play subscribers can watch over 10000 titles from Bollywood and regional movies.

Through this tie-up, Vodafone Play now offers a curated library of more than 14000+ titles with movies like Bajirao Mastani, Bajrangi Bhaijaan to Dishoom on a single platform.

On Vodafone Play subscribers can enjoy live streaming of Live TV channels and catch-up last one hour of the Live TV show at their convenience.

Vodafone Play has also added mini payer functionality which helps to continue watching their favorite content while browsing the app.

Vodafone Play, a single window to the world of entertainment, has crossed 1 million+ downloads on Google Play Store and Apple Store.

Upon downloading, the first-time user of Vodafone Play can avail 400 MB complementary data.

The service is currently free for all subscribers.

Speaking about the association, Dipankar Ghoshal, National Head – VAS and Content, Vodafone India said, “Vodafone Play and Eros Now together are offering a rich content of movies and videos for customers looking for entertainment on the go.

Having crossed 1+million downloads, we will continue to enrich the Vodafone Play portfolio by adding more quality content and features to make the customer experience more enjoyable.”

Speaking on the collaboration, Rishika Lulla Singh, CEO – Eros Digital said, “An important part of our digital strategy is to be platform-agnostic and we are delighted to partner with Vodafone, a leading player in its space.

We believe our integration with the Vodafone Play platform will further give momentum to our customer acquisition strategy”.

Download the Vodafone Play App directly from the Google Play & Apple App Store on your smartphone, or send an SMS ‘PLAY’ to 199.

With the largest and the most exciting portfolio of TV channels, movies, and video-on-demand, you can be rest assured that nothing, comes between you and your entertainment.

Global OTT Revenue to Top $50B

Next year could be shaping up to be a big one for SVOD and OTT providers, as research firm Strategy Analytics predicted that global OTT and SVOD revenues will reach $50.3 billion.

In his new report titled “Top Ten Digital Media Predictions for 2017,” Michael Goodman, director of Digital Media Strategies at Strategy Analytics, highlighted trends and events that will shape OTT video, digital advertising, and VR in 2017.

“As a result of the proliferation of broadband and connected devices consumers have more choices than ever in how, when, and where they connect with music, games, and video,” wrote Goodman in a statement.

“As consumer adoption of online alternatives grows the degree of disruption felt by traditional distribution models is accelerating.”

In all likelihood, a big driver of revenue for the global OTT/SVOD market next year will be Netflix’s and Amazon’s burgeoning international turf war.

After Netflix earlier this year announced its plans to offer its service in another 130 countries, Amazon recently confirmed its own plans to offer its Prime Video service in more than 200 countries and territories.

Although, Amazon Prime in those international markets will cost significantly less than in countries where Prime perks like free shipping are bundled in with the deal.

In addition to a strong year for global OTT/SVOD revenues, Goodman predicted digital video will pull in a bigger chunk of ad spend.

According to his forecast, global digital video ad spends will move past $20 billion in 2017 and take up 18% of global digital ad spend.

While Goodman predicts that the OTT video will “garner the hype,” he said that traditional television revenues (subscription + advertising) next year will hog 88% of the $192.7B television and OTT video market in the U.S.