Rise of OTT Platforms and addiction to binge-

watching

Submitted by

Mithlesh Kumar Gupta 102016010

Chaitanya Gupta 102016014
Bhanu Rakshita 102016017
Ritwick Roy 102016018
Suhani Bhatia 102016036

Under the guidance of

Mr. Sartaj Ahmad

School of Humanities and Social Sciences

 COPYRIGHT

© Copyright 2021 by Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or
transmitted in any form or by means without prior permission of the authors.
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Inspiration and motivation have always played a key role in the success of any venture.
We express our gratitude to our teacher Dr. Sartaj Lone who encouraged us to the
highest peak and to provide us the opportunity to prepare this project and his valuable
guidance and kind supervision throughout the course has shaped the present work as
its show.

We are immensely obliged to our friends for their elevating inspiration, encouraging
guidance and kind supervision in the completion of our project.

We would like to express the deepest appreciation to the participants who took the
survey for the success of any report depends largely on their encouragement and their
guidelines, they have been instrumental in the successful completion of this report.

Last, but not the least, our parents are also an inspiration for us. So with due regards,
we express our gratitude to them.
 Certificate

This is to certify that the report titled “Rise of OTT Platforms and addiction to binge-
watching” submitted
by the undermentioned students of batch “CS9”batch of ‘Thapar Institute of
Engineering and Technology’
is the original work of the candidates under my supervision.

Mithlesh Kumar Gupta 102016010

Chaitanya Gupta 102016014
Bhanu Rakshita 102016017
Ritwick Roy 102016018
Suhani Bhatia 102016036

___________
(Mr. Sartaj Ahmad)
 Table of Contents

S.No Title
1 Introduction
2 Factors leading to rise of OTT
3 Addiction to OTT and it affecting our lifestyle
4 Steps that can be taken to minimize addiction
5 The future of OTT and conclusion
6 Questionnaire and responses
7 References
 Chapter 1
Introduction

Over the past two decades, we have seen the rise of the Internet era. We have seen, activities like

shopping, banking and teaching being more popularized over the internet. So, it makes sense that

all our favourite movies, TV series are available to us on a single platform online. An OTT platform

provides just that.

An Over-the-top (OTT media service) is a streaming service offered directly to viewers via the

internet. OTT platforms works on Internet or cellular data signal as opposed to cable television

which get the signals from terrestrial broadcast or satellite. OTT platforms can be accessed from

any device with an internet connection ranging from mobile phone to smart televisions. In this

digital era, most of the people like to access their entertainment at their homes. They are just one

click away from watching their favourite movie or TV Series.

In recent years, there is a rise of OTT platforms among the youth all over the India. 89% of all

Indian Subscribers are under the age of 35. The different TV shows have become a part of the pop

culture all over the world. Now, gone were the days where all you could watch we the daily soaps.

People can now watch any content from any genre produced in any country. This diversity of

content adds to their popularity. There are 40 OTT platforms in India as of 2020 and the number is

certainly going to increase every year.

Due to COVID-19 pandemic, most of the countries went into a complete lockdown, forcing all

social transactions taking place online. The OTT platforms struck gold as many people were
bound to their homes and so these platforms were the primary sources of entertainment for

people stuck at home. Netflix, one of the most popular OTT platforms, saw an increase of 14% of

shares from 2019 to 2020. Netflix saw a rise of 15.8 million subscribers just in the first quarter of

2020.

Nowadays, all the new Bollywood movies are also being released on the OTT platforms. Movies

like Dil Bechara, Gulabo Sitabo have gained huge profits, even more than they can expect from a

cinematic release. So, should movie giants release their movies on the OTT platforms or should

they go back to the theatres and cinemas, still remains a big question.

The platforms have peaked their profits in 2020. Now, a question arises, after all the profit the OTT

platforms have gained during the lockdown, will they be able to sustain it in the future years and

what steps they should take to further increase their profits? This question arises because in a few

years, after the pandemic gets over, life will come back to normal. People may or may not be still

interested after the lockdown. So, how these huge companies can increase their audience in the

next few years will be an interesting aspect to see.

 Chapter 2
Factors leading to rise of OTT

Major factors contributing to the growth can be listed as-

1. Cost- Low cost ensure consumers are tied to the subscription schemes produced by OTT
industries which makes them get lost in an endless loop of paying for content.

2. Convenience- Everything an OTT provides is a few clicks away on any device and quite easy
to use, since no skill or hard work or time is required, it engages the users more.

3. Features- Features like skipping intro, songs, sharing timestamps, watching in sync with
friends, getting statistics for a show, trivia about the show/movie, subtitles that too in
multiple languages gives OTT an edge over normal Television and make it addictive.

4. Net neutrality- Net neutrality is the principle that an internet service provider (ISP) has to
provide access to all sites, content and applications at the same speed, under the same
conditions without blocking or giving preference to any content. This allowed these
platforms to work more flexibly.

5. Content availability- The market is huge, content from all over the world is essentially
compiled in a single place from where users can select and watch.
 Chapter 3
Addiction to OTT and it affecting our lifestyle

Be it Netflix, Amazon Prime, Voot or Hotstar, OTT platforms have made video content
consumption anywhere, everywhere and anytime multi-screen and multi-device experience. All it
takes to access the contents of the OTT Platforms is just a smart phone with proper internet
connection. Now this internet connection comes at a really cheap rate in India, with the
subscriptions fees of the OTT Platforms being also negligible.

Technology has changed the way people consume online content now, allowing them to provide
for their own viewing in terms of time, content, location, and devices used. Moreover the online
series don’t have to go through the ruthless scissors of the censor board like the Indian television
serials and films, so it can be said that they do have more freedom in terms of expression and
presentation of ideas and concepts .According to Germany-based research firm Statista, streaming
video-on-demand services have beaten TV in customer satisfaction in India, with the country
securing third spot (52 per cent) when it comes to pay for content, after China and Brazil.

But these so-called ‘entertainment providers’ are slowly taking control over our lives especially for
youth. Entertainment is the biggest reason behind the use of OTT platforms. The OTT Platforms
are gradually becoming part of common people’s lives. especially the youth, who are more
comfortable with online platforms and are having access to internet and devices like laptops or at
least a smartphone, prefers watching entertainment programs on OTT Platform as the web series
succeeded in providing the audiences with the much needed fresh contents, interesting plots and
realistic presentations of characters and situations with which the audiences tends to relate
themselves.

The mobility of gadgets on which these platforms are available and the availability of contents on
demand, the power to choose are the other important factors affecting the rise in demand of OTT
Platforms among viewers. Most often the young audience goes for “Binge watching” and it is
slowly taking the shape of addiction among them, hampering their lifestyle and health. The people
get so engrossed in “binge watching” that they fail to perform their daily routine including
studying or completing professional responsibility.

Anxiety, lack of sleep, preferring isolation are some of the common problems developing among
the “binge watchers”. Violence, use of vulgar language and sex are exaggerated in these web
series in the name of authentic presentation of the real world , while morality is often
compromised leading to negative impact on audience mind .
Researchers also highlights the point that web series with good content will have good effects on
the audience psychology while that with regressive contents will affect the audience psychology in
an adverse manner.

These OTT platforms are brainwashing for children from 7-14 year of age who are maximizing their
time over the screen which causes massive amounts of eye strain.

Researchers also highlights the point that web series with good content will have good effects on
the audience psychology while that with regressive contents will affect the audience psychology in
an adverse manner.

When grooming age youth would focus more on the web series it means they are learning a lot of
things from web series. In fact, the analysis shows that the majority of youth are psychologically
affected through web series. Web series are not only changing their behaviour toward aggressive
but also changing their language and language is the most important part of any culture.

Smoking, drinking habits are increasing among youth. More use of web series as a source of
entertainment than the other physical activities. Obesity, depression, eyes disorders are commonly
seen in youths

Such behaviour of binge-watching shows the addiction of viewers to virtual content that often
leads to disturbances in their personal life whether it’s displaying anti-social behaviours, increased
emotional sensitivity or disrupted sleep-cycles leading to various health issues amongst the
bingers, usually youth.
 Chapter 4
Steps that can be taken to minimize addiction

Now a days almost everyone whether child, teen, or adult has an addiction to use OTT platform.
Everyone likes to binge show and movies continuously without realising the harms of this
addiction. Some who realise doesn’t find a way to reduce it. So here are some tips and tricks which
can help to reduce the addiction of OTT platforms.

1) We can introduce a timer feature that tells how time we have spent on the platform. Also we
could set a time limit according to our convenience and capabilities.

2) Parental control can be introduced for children's sake. So that parents know how much time
their kid is spending on these platform and regulate it.

3) A health warning can be given after each episode or after an hour stating excessive usage can
have serious health hazards. Moreover depends upon person too. His/her will power or self-
control.

4)Also you may break the addiction by taking a break by deleting or snoozing the app and muting
the notification so that they do not tempt you to open the app and start harming yourself.

5)Also there could be restriction from the side of company controlling the platform according to
age to reduce the addiction.
 Chapter 5
The future of OTT and conclusion

According to a recent PWC report, smartphone penetration in India is expected to reach

around 99% by 2022. And at the same time, OTT platforms are expected to grow at a CAGR
of 22% by 2022 to around INR 6000 crores. With such a huge user base comprising a large
number of smartphone consumers under the age of 35, OTT platforms will focus more on
youth-friendly content. Another factor helping in the
tremendous growth of OTT platforms in India is the rising level of disposable incomes, i.e.,
an average Indian consumer can spend more amount on his enjoyment today as
compared to a few years back.
Shows and movies in local languages (Tamil and Telugu are some examples) have
attracted people from various fronts to these platforms; the reason being unlimited
movies and shows in their mother tongue at dirt cheap rates.

Future of OTT In India

It’s not that such platforms have content only for the youth; they offer
something for the kids, the elderly, and every other age group.

Internet data consumption per minute has also come down. Sometime back, streaming a two
and a half hour movie required 1GB of data for 360p quality. Nowadays 800MB is sufficient for
the same movie in 480p
quality. Thus, the streaming quality has improved with the decrease in data consumption.
People can now watch two movies by consuming just 1 GB or 1.5 GB of data.

Over-The-Top Media Service in India

Price also plays a dominant factor; Amazon Prime Video (APV) saw a larger user base than
Netflix in 2016 because of this factor. APV charges INR 129 per month for unlimited access
while Netflix charges INR 800 for its premium quality content. So OTT platforms must work on
a framework to provide maximum benefits at minimum cost, a tough nut to crack but a
necessary one to lure the Indian audience.
According to an article by IAS Insider, Experts believe that the future of OTT envisions an
increase in the production of local regional content by regional OTT players. With OTT
becoming a popular platform for consumers to access content, the market segments are
increasing rapidly, thus prompting OTT players to produce local content that meets the
needs and preferences of these markets. The need for custom-made content offering is
growing and with it comes the need for the production of more local content. For instance,
60% of global OTT viewers are in the Asia Pacific region, and that is why OTT players are
putting in more resources to produce local content to give the consumers of those regions
what they need for entertainment and informational purposes. Therefore, OTT players will
look into the future, taking advantage of the need for more local content to expand the
popularity and reach of OTT.
 Chapter 6
Questionnaire and responses
 Chapter 7
Conclusion

India is a huge market for OTT platforms, so offering different plans to satisfy a diverse
user base with different income levels is the only solution for faster absorption and
growth. Focusing more on Indian- friendly content would be another plus point for OTT
providers. For now, it can be said that Indians will continue to drift towards these
platforms, though television would still remain an important commodity in India. There
still exists a section of the population that doesn’t have access to smartphones and
internet. Moreover, the older generation prefers the television over OTT platforms for
entertainment. OTT adapting to changes is the reason it is blooming so much, providing
us with content we need and deserve. It is a great pastime but sometimes it can get over
our head lead to addiction. Self-control and judgement becomes necessary in such a
situation. Nevertheless we cannot deny that these platforms have helped a lot in this
pandemic where people are in a way ‘forced’ to be at home, it helps ease the stress and
make peace with the fact that we might be closed off for a little longer, it gives a hope.
 Chapter 8
References

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
2. https://www.google.com/forms/about/
3. https://brandequity.economictimes.indiatimes.com/
4. https://www.researchgate.net/
5. https://papers.ssrn.com/