iWorld
APOS ’17: India’s share of local original shows high, says Nitesh Kripalani
BALI: Amazon Prime, a global OTT player targeting one of Asia’s biggest markets in terms of size and numbers, feels that, in India, localisation of the content and service would drive subscriber numbers and viewing time.
Pointing out that Amazon launched the Fire TV stick in India recently with a “localised” experience for consumers, Amazon Prime India director and country head Nitesh Kripalani said, “We localise it from having a voice mode, which can search content not only in English but also in Hindi. We localized it where you can monitor your data usage.”
Kripalani, who was speaking at Media Partners Asia-organized APOS 2017 in Bali on `India: Placing Bets On New Pipes And Old’ said the strategy of localisation of content in local languages and local payment methods for subscription is being followed depending on consumer feedback. Continuing on localisation, including original content, Kripalani admitted that India was the only market where Amazon has “announced larger number of original shows” in local languages.
“We have already announced 18 shows for India; first one is coming very soon. We want to change the way how creators create content. We want them to think unconstrained, we are asking them to go back and take a look at those projects they were wanting to make (but were not able to),” he explained, adding the content that his company was encouraging was essentially something with a feature film quality but made in an episodic format.
Amazon Fire TV stick not only gives the `local’ feel and experience, but also enables subscribers to watch high quality 4K content from Prime Video library and other content providers too on the big screen.
Because piracy, like in India, is a global phenomenon, Kripalani said Amazon’s goal is to “enable latest movies and TV shows” made available legally and the Indian entertainment market was big enough for such moves.
Kripalani pointed out that Amazon Prime looked at some of the problems of customers in India on availability of content on multiple services and set about working out a strategy with the goal to bring about change in the way creators created content and created universal shows that customers cared for. Customers, he added, anywhere in the world had similar demands — they care about content selection, they care about reliability and convenient of access and the third was value.
Dwelling on the journey till now in one of the most exciting but complex market in Asia, Kripalani said that in four months the response from consumers had been very encouraging. “I think success will be if we build our super small market…and the way premium content is consumed (and) that will be a measure of the success.
“We are very excited with the growth of Fire TV stick and other products that we may bring in and, of course, we are looking at how the entire ecosystem is built in India, “Kripalani concluded, saying that the company is working across an array of India languages like Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Bengali and Marathi, apart from English, for content development and the way service is available in India.
Broadband
Tejas Networks names Arnob Roy as MD and CEO, overhauls top leadership team
The Bengaluru-based telecom gear maker reshuffles its entire top team even as quarterly revenue collapses by 83 per cent
BENGALURU: Tejas Networks is changing the guard at the top, and doing so at speed. The Bengaluru-headquartered telecom equipment maker has elevated Arnob Roy as managing director and chief executive officer, effective April 15, 2026, for a term running through to August 3, 2028, and in the same breath announced new appointments across operations and finance. The timing is pointed: the company is navigating one of the roughest patches in its recent history.
Roy steps up from his role as executive director and chief operating officer, a position he has held since March 2019. He brings more than three decades of experience in the high-technology sector across research and development, operations, and sales. His predecessor, Anand Athreya, resigned last year citing personal reasons and was relieved on June 20, 2025, leaving a gap at the top that has now been formally filled.
The numbers Roy inherits are sobering. Tejas posted a net loss of Rs 211.3 crore in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2026, a near-194 per cent widening year on year from Rs 71.8 crore in the same period a year earlier. Revenue for the quarter collapsed 82.6 per cent year on year to Rs 333 crore, down from Rs 1,907 crore. EBITDA swung to a loss of Rs 118.2 crore against a profit of Rs 121.5 crore a year ago. The culprit is not hard to identify: Tejas has derived the bulk of its revenue from BSNL’s fourth-generation network project, delivered as part of a Tata Consultancy Services-driven consortium, and that roll-out is now winding down.
Roy, speaking during a post-earnings conference call with analysts, was candid about where the company has been. “The BSNL 4G network went live across 100,000 sites. We deployed our largest indigenous router networks in the country through the BSNL MAN network, as well as in the BharatNet Phase 3 network,” he said, adding that Tejas had also successfully rolled out its 400G and 800G DWDM equipment in domestic and international markets, and continued the deployment of what it describes as the world’s largest satellite IoT network through its vehicle tracking system solution.
The pivot to new revenue streams is already under way. Tejas has partnered with Japan’s Rakuten Symphony and NEC Corporation to push deeper into international markets, with several Open Radio Access Network trials ongoing, one of which concluded recently. The company is also diversifying across equipment categories and geographies to sustain momentum as the BSNL chapter closes.
To prosecute that strategy, Roy needs a full team around him. Preetham Uthaiah has been appointed chief operating officer, moving up from his current role as vice president of product management for wireless products at Tejas Networks. Uthaiah brings nearly 30 years of global experience spanning engineering, product management, and business development across India and the United States. Before joining Tejas Networks, he served as executive vice president of product management, marketing, and strategy at Saankhya Labs, and held senior roles at Tech Mahindra on both sides of the Atlantic. He holds an MBA from Arizona State University and a degree in electronics and communications from Karnatak University.
On the finance front, AVS Prasad has been approved as chief financial officer, effective May 16, 2026, succeeding Sumit Dhingra, who has resigned. Prasad, currently serving as finance controller at Tejas Networks, brings over 27 years of experience within the Tata Group across telecom, aerostructures, and defence. A company secretary and cost and management accountant by training, he has spent more than 15 years in senior finance roles including CFO and financial controller positions, with expertise spanning corporate finance, treasury management, regulatory compliance, internal audit, and governance.
New chief executive, new chief operating officer, new chief financial officer — all installed in a single move, at a moment when the company’s largest revenue source is drying up and the next chapter remains unwritten. Tejas Networks has placed its bets. Now it has to deliver.
