iWorld
Pocket FM Rewind2023: 75B minutes streamed, 30 per cent during leisure hours
Mumbai: Audio series platform Pocket FM released its “Rewind2023: How India Got Entertained This Year” update highlighting the consumption behaviour and trends on the platform during the year.
The platform has exceeded 75 billion minutes of streaming, with an average monthly streaming of over six billion minutes. The listener community has crossed 130 million across the globe. It has registered over 20 million transactions in 2023, closing the year with 2.5 million monthly transactions.
The new entertainment category that Pocket FM pioneered with audio series got the entire nation hooked on its storytelling. Delhi NCR, Mumbai and Bangalore turned out to be the most active cities, with over 5 billion minutes being streamed from here. Emerging cities like Jaipur, Lucknow, Surat and Pune also ranked in Pocket FM’s top 10 Indian cities for 2023.
It’s entertainment 24/7. Never a dull moment!
Pocket FM defies the stereotype that audio is confined to specific moments like commuting or exercising. In 2023, the audio series category has driven this platform to a 24/7 entertainment destination, experiencing consistent user engagement across all time zones.
31.4 per cent of consumption occurred during leisure time (9 pm – 6 am). Morning (6-9 am) and evening (6-9 pm) hours saw 25.2 per cent consumption. However, the maximum spike was witnessed during productive hours (9 am – 6 pm) with 43.4 per cent consumption. This pattern reiterates the role of audio entertainment doubling up as a mental wellness support, helping to reduce stress and distraction while it increasing attention and focus. An almost equal gender representation was seen, with males constituting 55 per cent of the audience. Gen Z holds the majority at 39 per cent, followed by millennials at 30 per cent and GenX at 21 per cent.
In 2023, the top genres were drama, romance, and Sci-Fi & fantasy. males showed a preference for drama series, while females exhibited greater interest in Romance. Surprisingly, both genders demonstrated equal excitement for Sci-Fi and fantasy series consumption.
Audio Blockbusters are now a reality. Insta Millionaire exceeds Rs.100 crores revenue collection.
The platform achieved remarkable growth in 2023, doubling its audio series catalogue to end the year with 2000+ titles.
17 audio series surpassed 100 million plays, while 40 titles exceeded 50 million plays. In terms of revenue, 13 audio series surpassed the Rs.10 crore mark, and 25 series achieved Rs.5 crore in collections. Insta Millionaire turned out to be a mega-blockbuster with Rs.100 crore revenue collections.
The standout shows of the year, ‘Insta Millionaire,’ ‘Ek Ladki Ko Dekha To,’ and ‘Devil Se Shaadi,’ emerged as the biggest hits, leading in both playtime and revenue collection in India.
Encouraged by this trend, Pocket FM co-founder and CEO Rohan Nayak said, “This year, audio series as a category has surged in popularity, firmly establishing as a mainstream entertainment choice. We have emerged as a leading entertainment destination, boasting an average daily time spent of over 115 minutes and witnessing 24×7 entertainment consumption throughout the day. This year our blockbuster series Insta Millionaire has crossed Rs.100 crores in revenue, possibly the first entertainment title in audio to achieve this landmark. We predict this trend to get stronger, with audio series rising to prominence among the top three forms of entertainment, inspiring and complementing the storytelling in movies, web series, and TV.”
Pocket Novel – Nurturing the Writers’ Community
Pocket Novel, the online reading platform from Pocket FM, has grown significantly, with its revenue increased by 500%. Transforming into a literary haven, its writers’ community has grown to exceed 150,000 writers.
More than 25 novels garnered over 10 million reads, with 250+ novels hitting the 1 million reads mark. Additionally, 75+ novels from Pocket Novels were turned into audio series on Pocket FM.
Users now spend an average of over 100 minutes daily on this novel platform. The readers’ favourites span across romance, drama, suspense, fantasy, and Sci-Fi genres.
Moni Singh, writer of Devil Se Shaadi, turns out to be the top earner, followed by other leading writers like Cerica (alias Jigyasa) and Kavya Sharma. The top 10 writers have cumulatively earned over two crores rupees.
“Audio series as a category has been instrumental for writers, enabling them to share their stories with millions across the world. Thousands of writers are joining our community every day, inspired by the success stories of existing writers, turning us into a launchpad for storytellers through audio series. To support and reward our writers, we have set aside a Writers’ Fund of Rs. 250 crores for the writers community, ensuring they stay financially motivated in their creative journey.” added Nayak
iWorld
Telcos push for unified rules as spam shifts to OTT platforms
Over 80 per cent fraud moves online, operators seek common framework.
MUMBAI: The spam may have left your phone network but it hasn’t left you alone. India’s telecom operators are once again dialling up the pressure for a unified regulatory framework, warning that fraud is rapidly migrating to internet-based platforms where oversight remains far looser. According to industry communication, a leading operator has written to multiple arms of the government including the Department of Telecommunications, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Ministry of Finance arguing that tighter controls on traditional telecom networks are inadvertently pushing bad actors towards over-the-top (OTT) communication platforms.
The concern is not new, but the framing has sharpened. What was once an industry grievance is now being positioned as a consumer protection issue. Operators say that tackling spam in silos no longer works, as fraudsters seamlessly shift across platforms, exploiting regulatory gaps. The result: a moving target that traditional safeguards struggle to contain.
Executives point to a clear shift in fraud patterns. OTT platforms are increasingly being used for phishing links, impersonation scams and bulk unsolicited messaging, with industry estimates suggesting that over 80 per cent of spam activity has now migrated online. In this environment, the lines between telecom networks, messaging apps and financial fraud are blurring fast.
At the heart of the industry’s demand is a call for a technology-neutral regulatory framework, one that applies consistently across telecom and internet-based communication services. Operators argue that the absence of uniform safeguards, such as sender verification systems, robust spam filters and clearly defined accountability mechanisms, has created enforcement blind spots that fraudsters are quick to exploit.
The proposal is straightforward but far-reaching. Telcos are pushing for baseline anti-fraud measures across all communication platforms, alongside faster response systems and deeper coordination between ministries. Given the interconnected nature of telecom networks, digital platforms and financial systems, they argue that fragmented oversight only weakens the overall defence.
The broader issue is regulatory arbitrage, the ability of bad actors to hop between platforms based on which is least regulated at any given time. Without harmonised rules, operators say, efforts to curb fraud risk becoming a game of whack-a-mole.
As digital communication continues to expand, the debate is shifting from who regulates what to how consistently it is regulated. For now, telecom operators are making their case clear: in a world where spam travels freely, regulation cannot afford to stay fragmented.
