iWorld
Netflix becomes exclusive US pay TV home for Disney, Marvel, Lucas film & Pixar movies
MUMBAI: The global OTT player Netflix has partnered with Disney to broadcast forthcoming titles throughout the summer. Under the pact that was signed three and a half years ago, the streaming service will become the exclusive US pay TV home of the latest films from Disney, Marvel, Lucas film and Pixar with effect from September 2016.
Netflix’ chief content officer Ted Sarandos has also announced that Netflix original movie Mascots and War Machine will be arriving the same month. While the earlier is a mockumentary on sports mascots from This Is Spinal Tap writer Christopher Guest, the latter is from acclaimed Australian director David Michod and starring Brad Pitt, in the serio-comic tale of the U.S. military adventure in Afghanistan.
The partnership with Disney will allow Netflix to offer the movies during the same window as HBO and other paid cable channels but after the DVD and Blu-Ray releases.
It has also added various films that will be available in its catalogue this summer which includes titles like The Big Short, Hotel Transylvania 2, Spotlight, Goosebumps, the Back to the Future trilogy, the Lethal Weapon franchise, Sixteen Candles and The Wedding Planner. Other new additions include Spotlight, the Jurassic Park series and The Fundamentals of Caring.
Meanwhile, few Disney movies will not be featured on the platform. Movies that will no longer be aired from next month include titles like Hercules, Mulan and The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
iWorld
Micro-Dramas Surge in India, Redefining Mobile Content Habits
Meta-Ormax study maps rapid rise of short-form storytelling among 18–44 audiences.
MUMBAI: Micro-dramas aren’t just short, they’re the snack that ate Indian entertainment, and now everyone’s bingeing between the sofa cushions. Meta, in partnership with Ormax Media, has released ‘Micro Dramas: The India Story’, a comprehensive study unveiled at the inaugural Meta Marketing Summit: Micro-Drama Edition. The report maps how the vertical, bite-sized format is reshaping content consumption for mobile-first audiences aged 18–44 across 14 states.
Conducted between November 2025 and January 2026 through 50 in-depth interviews and 2,000 personal surveys, the research reveals that 65 per cent of viewers discovered micro-dramas within the last year proof of explosive adoption. Nearly 89 per cent encounter the format through social feeds and recommendations, making algorithm-driven discovery the primary engine rather than active search.
Key viewing patterns show a median of 3.5 hours per week (about 30 minutes daily) spread across 7–8 short sessions. Consumption peaks between 8 pm and midnight, with additional spikes during commutes and work breaks classic “in-between moments” that the format fills perfectly. Around 57 per cent of viewing happens in ambient mode (while doing something else), and 90 per cent is solo, enabling more intimate, personal storytelling.
Romance, family drama and comedy lead genre preferences. Audiences show growing openness to AI-generated content, 47 per cent find it unique and creative, while only 6 per cent say they would avoid it entirely. Regional languages are surging after Hindi and English, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada dominate consumption.
Meta, director, media & entertainment (India) Shweta Bajpai said, “Micro-drama isn’t a passing trend, it’s rewriting the rules of Indian entertainment. In under a year, an entirely new category of platforms has emerged, built audience habits from scratch, and created a business vertical that is scaling fast.”
Ormax Media founder-CEO Shailesh Kapoor added, “Micro-dramas are beginning to show the early signs of becoming a distinct content category in India’s digital entertainment landscape. When a format aligns closely with how audiences naturally engage with their devices, it has the potential to scale very quickly.”
The study proposes ecosystem-wide responsibility, universal signposting of commercial intent, shared accountability among advertisers, platforms, creators, schools and parents, built-in safeguards, and formal media literacy in schools.
In a feed that never sleeps and a day that never stops, micro-dramas have slipped into the cracks of every spare minute turning 30-second stories into the new national pastime, one vertical swipe at a time.
