iWorld
BookMyShow Stream partners with Star Entertainment
Mumbai: BookMyShow Stream, India’s largest home-grown TVOD streaming platform from the house of BookMyShow – India’s leading entertainment destination entered into a content partnership with Star Entertainment Pvt Ltd, India’s premier distributor of independent international films. This strategic partnership aims to bring the finest of international cinematic content from the house of Star Entertainment every month to Indian audiences through BookMyShow Stream available for both rent and buy options.
In a short span of time, the uber-convenient Transaction Video-on-Demand (TVOD) category has gained popularity in India’s burgeoning OTT space and BookMyShow Stream has carved a niche for itself by offering a versatile mix of specially curated content across films and long-form content series for a wide, loyal and digitally savvy consumer base.
Following the resounding success of Asterix and Obelix: The Middle Kingdom, brought to India by Star Entertainment which premiered in English, Hindi and Tamil on BookMyShow Stream, the partnership is set to unveil an impressive line-up of films including the much-anticipated blockbusters of the year, such as Devil’s Deal, Assassin and Point Men. These exceptional films are scheduled to premiere on BookMyShow Stream, starting 10 November, 2023, offering Indian viewers a unique opportunity to immerse themselves in the splendour of these cinematic masterpieces from around the world.
Speaking on the partnership with Star Entertainment, BookMyShow COO – Cinemas Ashish Saksena said, “The TVOD space in India has grown considerably and paying for specific content that audiences want to watch has become a popular way of experiencing on-demand content when it comes to discerning Indian consumers. On BookMyShow Stream, cinephiles over the past two years have increasingly shown a clear preference towards titles that they want to watch and opting to rent or buy as per their convenience. This partnership with Star Entertainment will not only cement BookMyShow Stream’s selective and specially curated slate of foreign language content that spans languages across the world but will also enable their access to a wider audience by localising them in Indian languages.”
Star Entertainment Pvt Ltd dircetor Kimaya Hemdev emphasises the universal appeal of storytelling, transcending geographical boundaries: “In our pursuit of delivering the world’s finest content to India, we have discovered that exceptional stories know no borders. Regardless of their origin, these narratives resonate with audiences worldwide. The remarkable success of Korean content in India stands as a testament to this truth. At Star Entertainment, our unwavering commitment to bridging cultural divides and bringing these universal stories to Indian audiences remains our utmost priority.”
This partnership reflects the shared commitment of BookMyShow Stream and Star Entertainment to expand the horizons of entertainment in India. The partnership is not just about bringing international gems to Indian screens; it also paves the way for a broader array of global content to become accessible to Indian audiences.
India has been swept up in the Korean wave, with phenomena like Squid Game taking the world by storm amidst the surging popularity of K-pop and K-dramas. The prevalence of these cultural phenomena highlights that the barrier of language is no longer a hindrance. Stories now traverse geographical and linguistic frontiers, captivating the hearts of audiences across India. To meet the growing demand for international content, companies like Star Entertainment make substantial investments in dubbing and localising foreign films, ensuring that these captivating narratives can be enjoyed by diverse Indian audiences.
iWorld
WhatsApp emerges as key commerce channel in India: Meta report
Whitepaper shows 77 per cent of purchases influenced by social media and shoppers spend 2.5 times more across channels
MUMBAI: If shopping once meant a stroll down the high street, today it begins with a scroll on a smartphone. India’s retail journey is being rewritten in real time, as consumers glide between Instagram Reels, WhatsApp chats and physical stores with barely a pause for thought. A new whitepaper by Meta in collaboration with the Retailers Association of India argues that this shift is not cosmetic but structural, powered by artificial intelligence, short form video, creators and conversational commerce.
The numbers underline the scale of the change.
Social media now influences 77 per cent of retail purchase decisions in India, with Meta’s platforms accounting for 96 per cent of social driven discovery. Discovery itself is increasingly passive and visual rather than deliberate and search led. As much as 97 per cent of consumers watch short form video daily, and 60 per cent of time spent on Facebook and Instagram is devoted to video content.
In other words, the shop window has moved to the feed.
The report highlights the growing dominance of the omnichannel shopper, a consumer who researches and buys fluidly across online and offline environments. More than 50 per cent of retail consumers research products online before purchasing in store. Equally, over 50 per cent browse in store before completing their purchase online.
This blended behaviour is lucrative. Shoppers who buy across channels spend 2.5 times more than single channel shoppers. When customers engage across multiple touchpoints, spending rises by as much as 73 per cent. For retailers, unified commerce is no longer a strategy slide. It is a revenue imperative.
Meta India director of E commerce and retail Meghna Apparao, urged brands to focus on three pillars: Reels and creators for authentic storytelling, omnichannel performance marketing to connect platforms, and WhatsApp as a personalised commerce channel. Hitesh Bhatt of RAI noted that the challenge is no longer adopting digital tools but integrating them to deliver measurable outcomes.
Artificial intelligence sits at the heart of this integration. Indian retailers using Meta’s omnichannel optimisation have recorded more than fourfold improvements in omnichannel return on ad spend. Businesses that integrated in store sales data through Meta’s Conversions API have reported Roas uplift ranging from 2 times to 5 times or more, alongside incremental sales growth of up to 9 times depending on category and market.
Integrated data strategies have also delivered revenue growth of up to 15 per cent, suggesting that when digital signals are tied to offline outcomes, marketing efficiency sharpens considerably.
Retailers are already putting this into practice. Reliance Digital has leaned into a Reels first strategy, working with regional creators to drive engagement and measurable business impact. Croma says Meta’s AI powered tools have enabled it to integrate offline data and activate performance marketing across touchpoints, strengthening both footfall and revenue across online and physical stores.
Trust is increasingly creator led. The report finds that 71 per cent of consumers make a purchase within a couple of days of seeing creator content on Meta’s technologies. Campaigns that leverage reels and creators have delivered 71 per cent higher brand intent lift and 19 per cent lower acquisition costs.
Micro and nano creators, in particular, are accelerating purchase decisions by embedding products into relatable, local narratives. Influence is no longer confined to celebrity endorsements. It is distributed, conversational and continuous.
If Instagram and Facebook drive discovery, WhatsApp is emerging as the conversion engine. According to the report, 72 per cent of product discovery now happens on WhatsApp. Retailers using business messaging and click to WhatsApp campaigns are seeing a 61 per cent average improvement in return on ad spend, a 62 per cent increase in leads and 22 per cent higher order values.
The implication is clear. Commerce is shifting from clicks to conversations. Discovery, purchase and post purchase support increasingly unfold within a single chat thread.
The whitepaper argues that omnichannel maturity will define competitiveness in Indian retail. Consumers no longer toggle between online and offline modes. They operate across both simultaneously, often within the same buying journey.
For brands, the task is no longer about being present on digital platforms. It is about stitching together discovery, data, conversation and store experience into a unified loop that can be measured in footfall, revenue and repeat purchase.
As India’s shoppers continue to scroll before they stroll, the retailers who align AI, creators and messaging into one seamless experience may find that the path to growth is less about adding new channels and more about connecting the ones they already have.
