iWorld
Constant communication with consumers is Rahul Maroli’s mantra to grow ZEE5’s subscription
KOLKATA: Streaming services have found more relevance in the post-Covid2019 period. ZEE5, one of the leading contenders in the ‘streaming war’, has brought a new head to build its subscription business when more consumers flocking to those services. ZEE5 senior vice president and business head Rahul Maroli aspires to touch the top both in terms of subscription and viewership.
“We want to be relevant to every Indian. Content has to resonate with every Indian. An extension of that became the Atrangi campaign where we are trying to say that every person is unique, that’s what this country is all about and we respect your uniqueness. In terms of our specific goal, we want to be the largest OTT platform in the country both in subscription and viewership,” Maroli says in an interaction with Indiantelevision.com.
Maroli comes with a rich experience but not within the media industry. He worked in automotive, mobility, e-commerce and consumer businesses earlier while his last assignment was with Ola. Asked about what learnings he wants to incorporate here, Maroli says that he has mostly looked after the consumer business in Ola, so the ethos remains same.
“As long as you understand who your consumers are and how are they reacting, what is it they like, what is it you don’t like, you keep constantly going back and talking to them and trying to understand, then your ability to communicate with them, to produce good services is absolutely the same,” he adds.
The reports and high-level data are not sufficient but the teams have to keep talking to the consumer. Talking about his other lesson, he said that working very closely with the team is very important. Hence, he would try to apply these lessons in his new role.
He adds that partnership is a very important foundation of their business. “Telcos are looking at OTTs as means of building consumer loyalty. We want to go deeper into that and build more relationships. We clearly see that where you have provided access to OTT platforms there is much more consumer loyalty,” he shares.
Maroli further mentions that ISPs are also partners with strong propositions as they have direct access to last-mile consumers. ZEE5 has a deep partnership with ACT Broadband and the platform will roll out more partnerships in the coming days.
ZEE5, like other OTT platforms, has gained more users and subscribers during this period. Although lockdown is easing, Maroli states that it has not seen much change in the platform’s retention cohorts. According to him, the number remained the same for both direct consumers and b2b partnerships.
iWorld
X launches XChat messaging app on iOS with calls and encryption
Standalone app marks shift from “everything app” vision, adds E2E messaging.
MUMBAI: From one big app to many small chats, X seems to be splitting its ambitions. X has rolled out its standalone messaging app, XChat, to iOS users, opening up a new front in its evolving product strategy. The app allows users to connect with existing X contacts through private and group messages, file sharing, as well as audio and video calls. The launch follows a limited beta phase, where the platform tested the product with a smaller user base to refine the experience. Now available publicly, XChat marks a notable pivot from earlier ambitions championed by Elon Musk to turn X into a single “everything app” combining messaging, payments, commerce and more.
Instead, the company under xAI ownership and backed by SpaceX appears to be building a suite of standalone applications, each targeting specific use cases while expanding its broader ecosystem.
At launch, XChat includes end-to-end encrypted messaging, PIN-based access, disappearing messages, and features such as message editing, deletion for all participants, and screenshot blocking. The company has also said the app is free from advertisements and tracking mechanisms, positioning it as a privacy-first alternative in a crowded messaging space.
However, security claims around the platform are likely to face scrutiny. Earlier iterations of XChat drew criticism from experts who argued it fell short of established encrypted platforms like Signal. With the wider rollout, the app is expected to undergo fresh evaluation to assess whether those concerns have been addressed.
Beyond messaging, XChat will also house X’s Communities feature, which is being discontinued on the main platform due to low usage and spam concerns. Migrating these users could provide an early boost to adoption, effectively turning XChat into both a communication and community hub.
The move underscores a broader recalibration at X less about cramming everything into one app, and more about spreading bets across multiple touchpoints, one message at a time.
