iWorld
SVOD subscriptions on the rise, pay-TV subs declining
MUMBAI: A new report from the NPD Group reveals that the number of US households subscribing to premium TV channels over the past two years has witnessed a six per cent decline as against an inverse growth spike of four per cent for SVOD subscribers.
The report, The State of SVOD, states that 32 per cent of US households were subscribed to premium TV channels in August 2013, compared to 27 per cent that subscribed to SVOD services. Overall, digital video transactions were up three per cent since 2012, reaching 70 per cent of all home video transactions in 2013. SVOD made up 71 per cent of all digital video transactions, and it continued to increase faster than all other digital acquisition types.
The SVOD service, Netflix, emerged as the clear leader in SVOD. However, Hulu Plus and Amazon Prime are receiving the largest growth benefits in the category, as consumers begin to add on secondary SVOD services.
iWorld
Banijay Asia’s The 50 tops OTT charts with 8.1 million JioHotstar views
Reality competition becomes most watched show on JioHotstar in debut week.
MUMBAI: Fifty contestants walked into a palace, but millions of viewers showed up for the drama. Reality competition The 50, produced by Banijay Asia, has emerged as the most watched show on JioHotstar, clocking 8.1 million views in its debut week. The figure, reported by Ormax Media, places the show at the top of the OTT viewership charts and marks a strong opening for the digital reality format.
Adapted from a popular French format, The 50 brings together 50 personalities from television, digital platforms, music and reality shows inside a grand palace setting. Over the course of a 50 day competition, participants form alliances, compete in unpredictable tasks and navigate eliminations as the field steadily narrows.
Guiding the game is a mysterious figure known as The Lion, an unseen game master whose voice introduces twists, challenges and strategic turns throughout the show, adding an extra layer of suspense to the contest.
What distinguishes The 50 from typical reality competitions is its audience driven prize structure. Instead of the winner taking home the final reward, the prize is awarded to one of the winner’s registered followers through the show’s dedicated app. The mechanism effectively turns viewers into participants, allowing fans to have a direct stake in the outcome.
The contestant lineup features a mix of television actors, reality stars and digital creators, including Karan Patel, Urvashi Dholakia, Divya Agarwal, Mr Faisu and Dushyant Kukreja, each bringing their own fan following to the show.
With its blend of celebrity personalities, strategic gameplay and interactive viewer participation, The 50 has quickly carved out a strong foothold in India’s digital entertainment landscape. Its 8.1 million views in the opening week underline the growing appetite for large scale reality formats designed specifically for OTT audiences.
