Streamers’ regional-content binge; RBI lays its cards on the table

The race to create shows and movies in more regional languages is on. That’s where the crowd and cash currently are.

Screen savers: KGF 2 (Kannada), RRR (Telugu) and Vikram (Tamil), all 2022 releases, broke box-office records across the country. Hindi content, meanwhile, didn’t live up to its billing in theatres or on the internet.

• All major streaming platforms in India are investing in regional content beyond Hindi big time. They woke up to the need 12 months ago. Better late than never. 
• They have appointed new content and business heads, who are acquiring and commissioning titles, especially in Telugu and Tamil.

View count: In streaming, money has come mainly from subscriptions, which tend to plateau. Advertisements now look like a better model. More people may be willing to sign up for a service that shows ads but charges little or nothing for the subscription. (The just unveiled Netflix-Microsoft deal is a step in this direction.)

But for this to happen, companies must also expand their content menu, tailoring it to the diverse tastes of 450 million new-to-internet users in India. This segment forms the fastest-growing internet market in the world.