iWorld
Netflix available in more than 300 mn pay-TV households
MUMBAI: A new report from UK research firm Ampere Analysis has said that Netflix is available in more than 300 million pay-TV households. It also added that more than 50 million of those have come during 2019.
The reach through Pay TV partnerships is almost double the company's current global subscriber base of 158 million. Netflix has been active in signing deals with pay-TV operators to extend its global reach. This year also, Netflix has signed more than 15 deals with major international pay-TV operators.
While Western Europe has highly contributed to the growth, Netflix is available in about 86 per cent of all pay-TV homes in North America. The report also found that the streaming platform was available in about one-quarter of pay TV households in the Middle East and North Africa at the end of 2018, driven by its regional partnership with operator OSN. However, the partnership ended in August 2019, leaving Israel as the only market in the region with existing deals.
The scenario is different in Central and South America, Asia Pacific and Central and Eastern Europe are blank canvases for Netflix. There are 400 million pay-TV subscribers in the region excluding China but Netflix has availability to about 40 million of those. While India is a key market for Netflix, fewer than one per cent of all pay-TV households in India subscribe to the OTT platform.
“These onboarding deals give Netflix pay TV reach in every region bar SubSaharan Africa, while the Western European pay TV market has shown the most rapid growth for these deals,” the report said.
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.
