iWorld
Voot partners Google to launch VoD PWA
MUMBAI: Viacom18’s ad-supported OTT service Voot has turned its mobile website into a Progressive Web App (PWA) using features such as add to homescreen and a service worker. PWA allows reliable, fast, and engaging experience for users on mobile web.
Viacom18 Digital Ventures COO Gaurav Gandhi commented, “In this business both content and technology have equal equity in realizing the potential of our consumer proposition. While content is our domain expertise, to push the envelope in terms of technology, we continuously work with partners from around the world. We are delighted to work closely with Google to launch Voot on the PWA platform. This launch significantly enhances the experience for all Voot users on mobile browsers and we believe this is a big step where users can have an equally rich experience of our service without downloading the app.”
Voot is available as both a native app and a mobile web app. It offers close to 35000 hours of premium content that includes not only exclusive shows from theViacom18 network channels like Colors and MTV, but also original series created for Voot. It is also the largest online destination for kid’s content under its brand Voot Kids.
Voot launched its new UI first on mobile web, ahead of desktop web and native app. Within days of launch, the video watch time on mobile web is jumped over 39 per cent and is comparable to that of native apps. The improvements also had a significant positive impact on reducing load times, reducing abandonments, and much better conversions.
“We have moved the needle very significantly when it comes to user experience on the Mobile Web by adopting PWA,” said Viacom18 Digital Venture product and technology head Rajneel Kumar. Kumar further added, “All the time and effort we’ve spent on technology and UI changes as well as optimizations seem to be showing very positive results. We are going to continue to refine this further and we are confident that we will continue to see significant consumer lift.”
“We are delighted with the Voot implementation of a Progressive Web App. PWAs are well suited for India, where the mobile web allows publishers to reach a large audience across a highly diverse set of devices and bandwidth. The early numbers on performance are very encouraging, and demonstrate the potential of mobile web media distribution, ” said Google product manager John Pallett.
Voot PWA includes offline page caching functionality, fast loading, responsive interface and push notifications. The ‘Add to Home Screen’ feature of PWA allows the user to launch the page from their home screen like a native app and a service worker decreases load times. Voot is an early adopter of this technology and it is only a matter of time before PWAs become the new standard for web interactions, just as responsive design has become the norm rather than an exception.
While 4G services have recently launched, there are many users who access the Internet via 2G and 3G networks, with slow and sometimes expensive data transfer rates. To reduce the data transfer, VOOT has optimized its images specifically for mobile. The site now dynamically serves either JPEG or WebP images depending upon browser capabilities that minimize image data size, resulting into seamless viewing experience.
These optimizations resulted in a 63 per cent reduction in first-view page load data transfer and an 86 per cent reduction in data transfer for returning visitors. Page loads became five times faster for first-time visitors, and almost seven times faster for returning users.
iWorld
Samay Raina returns with Still Alive, confronts 2025 controversy in bold comeback special
Comeback set tackles controversy, blending humour with raw storytelling
MUMBAI: Samay Raina is set to release his new stand-up comedy special, Still Alive, on YouTube on April 7, 2026, marking a high-profile return following a turbulent year.
The trailer for the special dropped on April 5, offering a glimpse into what Raina describes as a raw and unfiltered set that leans as much on honesty as it does on humour.
Positioned as a comeback of sorts, Still Alive draws heavily from the controversy surrounding his show India’s Got Latent in early 2025. The episode led to legal trouble, multiple FIRs, and a lengthy six-hour interrogation by the Maharashtra Cyber Cell, placing the comedian at the centre of intense public scrutiny.
Rather than sidestep the episode, Raina leans into it. The special reflects on the fallout and his personal journey through it, blending observational comedy with moments of emotional candour. Early audience feedback from live performances suggests the tone is less about rapid-fire punchlines and more about storytelling with bite.
The special was filmed during his global Still Alive & Unfiltered tour, which ran from August 2025 to early 2026. The tour saw Raina perform across major international venues, including the Madison Square Garden Theatre in New York, a milestone that places him among the youngest Indian comedians to take that stage.
The title itself signals resilience. “Still Alive” is a nod to navigating both legal and public backlash while choosing to remain unapologetically authentic, a theme that appears to anchor the set.
With the special set to premiere online, all eyes are now on how audiences respond to a performance that promises equal parts reflection and wit. For Raina, the message is clear. He is not just back, he is ready to be heard on his own terms.
