DTH
IMCL engages Cloudpoint Technologies to manage key aspects of its B2C segment
KOLKATA: In keeping with its focus on enhancing its services to its subscribers, IndusInd Media & Communications Ltd (IMCL) has engaged Cloudpoint Technologies to manage key aspects of its B2C segment, in Mumbai initially. Cloudpoint, which has been engaged by IMCL since last year to provide strategic advisory and support services for its direct points, will now take on the mantle of providing key services to IMCL’s direct CATV subscribers in Mumbai – ranging from revenue collection and end-to-end customer lifecycle management to upselling and cross-selling. Cloudpoint will deliver these services through a dedicated team completely focussed on the core objective of consumer satisfaction.
IMCL chief operating officer NK Rouse said, “It is our constant endeavour to enhance consumer experience through superior service and also foster growth through engagements with specialist firms. This initiative is one such endeavour and is in line with one of the guiding principles of our Hinduja Group – “Partnership for Growth”. It is not only going to unlock opportunities for bringing about desired growth, but also result in superior consumer experience through agile and focussed consumer service for our direct point consumers.”
“We are obviously delighted to be a part of IMCL’s amazing journey, now with a deeper engagement – moving from strategic advisory role to operational execution. Team Cloudpoint will strive to achieve the objectives which the company has set for itself,” Cloudpoint Technologies director and co-founder Himanshu Patil said.
With ever-changing consumer expectations and requirements, more pronounced during these challenging times; it is imperative to move closer to the consumers and extend world-class service to create the desired consumer delight. This engagement would add significant value to the direct consumer journey by enhancing agility, coupled with an improved support system.
DTH
Prasar Bharati’s WAVES earns Rs 2.9 crore in first year
Platform scales content, users but monetisation gaps limit revenue growth.
MUMBAI: Big waves, small ripples at least for now. When Prasar Bharati launched its OTT platform WAVES at the 55th International Film Festival of India in November 2024, it pitched a bold vision: a homegrown rival to global and domestic streaming giants, blending video, audio, gaming and commerce into a single digital ecosystem. Five months into FY2024–25, however, the platform’s revenue stands at just Rs 2.90 crore, a figure that underscores the gap between ambition and monetisation.
On paper, WAVES looks anything but modest. The platform has ingested 13,608 titles, totalling 9,495 hours of content, with over 13,000 titles already live. It has streamed more than 575 live events from the Mahakumbh Amrit Snan and the 76th Republic Day parade to the Hockey India League, Kabaddi World Cup and Mann Ki Baat while offering 74 live TV channels and 12 radio channels. With over 10 lakh registered users and more than 200 content partners onboarded, the scale resembles that of a fully operational streaming service rather than a pilot project.
The architecture supporting this scale is equally robust. Built under Prasar Bharati’s Central Archives vertical, WAVES runs on a cloud-based infrastructure with DRM, encryption and an integrated analytics dashboard. It includes dedicated units for content ingestion, quality control, publishing, graphics, marketing and billing, and is distributed across platforms such as OTTplay, Tata Play and BSNL. The offering extends beyond video to include audio-on-demand, e-games and even e-commerce via ONDC integration.
Yet, the numbers reveal a core disconnect. Despite its scale, WAVES generated just Rs 2.90 crore in a market where India’s OTT industry crossed Rs 23,000 crore in 2024. A key bottleneck lies in monetisation infrastructure: subscriptions cannot currently be purchased within the app and must be completed via an external website. In a mobile-first country where over 95 per cent of OTT consumption happens on smartphones, this extra step creates friction that most users are unlikely to overcome.
Ironically, content is not the problem, it is the platform’s biggest strength. Prasar Bharati holds one of the world’s richest broadcast archives, including 45,154 hours of digitised Akashvani programming and 35,723 hours from Doordarshan. For WAVES alone, over 3,800 hours of archival content have been made OTT-ready, including classics such as Ramayan and Shaktimaan, alongside rare cultural recordings and historical broadcasts.
There are early signs that this library holds commercial potential. Revenue from archival content licensing rose sharply to Rs 3.38 crore in FY24, up from Rs 67 lakh the previous year. Meanwhile, free digital platforms continue to drive massive reach, the PB Archives Youtube channel clocked 119.78 million views and added 4,02,000 subscribers in FY2024–25, crossing 1.7 million in total, while DD News has over 5.84 million subscribers.
That, however, presents a strategic dilemma. While free distribution builds scale, it also conditions audiences to expect content at zero cost making it harder to transition to paid models. WAVES, designed as a hybrid AVOD-SVOD platform with advertising and subscription layers, is yet to fully crack this balance.
The broader challenge is not technological but strategic. In an ecosystem dominated by platforms offering seamless payments, aggressive pricing and high-budget originals, WAVES is still bridging the gap between being a content repository and a commercially viable product.
For now, the platform reflects both promise and paradox. It has the scale, the content and the infrastructure but until monetisation catches up, WAVES remains less a revenue engine and more a digital showcase of what India’s public broadcaster could become.
