Netflix: Hustling for

More in India’s
Crowded OTT Space
Group 5: Aaron Marohl,
Andrew Wagner, Darline
Stinfil, James Jimenez,
Rachel Hiar
Key Information
The OTT industry and its major players in India

The importance of the Indian OTT market for Netflix

Strategies to increase the subscriber base in India

Pricing strategies

Offerings that Netflix should compete on

Conditions that are essential for Netflix to win the streaming wars in
India
Summary/Intro
Question 1: Examine and discuss the OTT industry and the
major players in
India and discuss the importance of the Indian OTT market for
Netflix.
● OTT Industry characterized by:
○ Video on demand services
○ Accessibility of content on various
devices for users
○ Flexibility to watch content anytime
● The major players in the Indian Market are
Hotstar, Amazon Prime video, ALTBalaji,
Zee5, YouTube, Eros Now, SonyLIV, MX
Player and VOOT
○ The OTT market in India had more than
30 players in 2019
Question 1: Examine and discuss the OTT industry and the
major players in
India and discuss the importance of the Indian OTT market for
Netflix
● India was ahead of other
countries in hours spent on
video-streaming platforms
● Netflix was the most
downloaded app in India
● OTT market was expected to
double its viewer base by 2020
Question 2: Discuss the possible strategies for Netflix to
increase its subscriber base in India
● What do Indians want from their
streaming providers?
○ Accessibility by mobile device
○ Downloadable offline content
○ Varied content choices
○ Reduced data usage while
streaming
● Who is and is not streaming?
○ Is: young men
○ Is not: women, 36+, non metro/tier
1 cities
Question 2: Discuss the possible strategies for Netflix to
increase its subscriber base in India

● Pricing
○ Cost sensitivity
● Content
○ Language, sports, live news,
variety, originals, exclusives
● Partnerships
○ Telecoms and local production
companies
● Reduce freeloading/password
sharing
Question 3: What are the different pricing strategies and options
it could use? Discuss the pros and cons of each option.
● Mobile only
○ Pro: only way to reach many young Indians
○ Con: less profitable
● Tiered plans
○ Pro: attract more price conscious customers
○ Con: may be receiving less revenue per customer than if there
was a single plan
● Freemium
○ Pro: hook customers
○ Con: no guarantee customers will subscribe
Question 3: What are the different pricing strategies and options
it could use? Discuss the pros and cons of each option.
● Price leader
○ Pro: attract and retain customers
○ Con: low margins; quality content is expensive
● Annual vs. monthly plan
○ Pro: financial incentive to consumers to pay in advance, able to better
manage /forecast subscribership rates
○ Con: lower revenue
● Free service supported by advertisements
○ Pro: large viewership
○ Con: not as profitable long term, eventually switch to paid service
Question 4: What offerings should Netflix compete on - a wide selection
of movies or focus on generating exclusive content such as Sacred
Games ?
● Prime Video prices were similar
to other platforms (Hotstar, for
example) but gained popularity
due to its exclusive content for
English-speaking Indians
● Prime Video was also the first to
add shows in Telagu and Tamil,
which are regional languages
● Netflix should emulate Prime
Video by focusing on exclusive
content

Rachel
Rachel
Question 5: What conditions are essential for Netflix to win the streaming
wars in India? What do you recommend? Discuss the possible strategies
for Hotstar to defend its leadership position in India.

Strategic partnerships
● 2017: Reliance Industries stake in Balaji Telefilms
○ Resulted in increased accessibility to Eros Now’s multi-language
library on Jio TV and Jio Cinema
● 2018: Amazon Prime Video and Netflix partnership with the world’s
largest frameworks to set up their presence
○ Increased India’s mobile-data utilization
○ Helped telecom operators change consumers’ video-consuming
habits
○ Increased demand for Indian shows
○ Paved the way for a “digital content ecosystem”, even in rural India

Andrew
Question 5: What conditions are essential for Netflix to win the streaming
wars in India? What do you recommend? Discuss the possible strategies
for Hotstar to defend its leadership position in India.

Focus on exclusive content

Mobile option

Competitive pricing

Andrew
Question 5: What conditions are essential for Netflix to win the streaming
wars in India? What do you recommend? Discuss the possible strategies
for Hotstar to defend its leadership position in India.

● Continue sports-focused
content and price flexibility
● Continue vernacular content
as it reaches a broader
audience
○ User personas
○ Recommended content
● Psychographic segmentation
● Real-time engagement with
users

Andrew
Question 6: Provide an update on Netflix’s current position in
the industry and how the pandemic has impacted the company

Darline
Netflix is still King

Darline
Netflix’s Earnings are Growing
● Positive impact from COVID
○ 20% subscriber growth over
Pandemic
○ YoY net income growth (2020:
47%, 2021: 82%)
○ YoY revenue growth (2020:
24%, 2021: 19%)
● Mainly due to slowing production
operations and an increase in
subscribers

Aaron
Aaron
Recent News
● Slowed subscriber growth
○ Lost 200,000 subscribers Q1 2022
○ 2 million more expected Q2 2022
● Crackdown on password sharing (41% share passwords)
● 7% decrease in net profit from Q1 2021 to Q1 2022

James
Opinions on Netflix’s Future & Conclusion
● 45% of revenue from US/Canada
○ Expansion into new markets is
critical
● Streaming services need to target
specific segments
○ Hotstar/Disney+
● Authors hit it on the nail for winning
India’s OTT space
○ Accessibility
○ Availability
○ Affordability

James
Questions?

James
Sources
● https://www.statista.com/statistics/250934/quarterly-number-of-netflix-streaming-
subscribers-worldwide/
● https://www.morningstar.com/stocks/xnas/nflx/financials
● https://www.comparitech.com/blog/vpn-privacy/netflix-statistics-facts-figures/
● https://www.alltopeverything.com/most-popular-streaming-services/
● https://fortune.com/2022/04/19/netflix-earnings-stock-falls-projects-2-million-subs
cribers-loss-next-quarter/
● https://www.animationxpress.com/latest-news/2019-the-year-of-indian-ott-
explosion/