Cricket Paywall, Consolidation to Boost SVOD Market in 2025

India's subscription video on demand(SVOD) market, which bounced back to 125 million subscriptions in 2024 after a brief decline in 2023, is set for robust growth in 2025. Experts attribute this growth to industry connection, similar to the merger of Star India and Viacom18, along with increased efforts by premium platforms to expand in smaller towns, Industry experts expressed.

A major growth driver could be cricket moving behind a paywall, as it remains a key subscription catalyst, they said. If implemented, this shift could boost the SVOD base and accelerate paid streaming adoption across demographics. While live sports have been free for the past two years, industry insiders suggest this could change as Jio Star explores new subscription models for entertainment and sports. Notably, live sports still included ads, even behind the paywall.

According to Media Partners Asia, total SVOD subscription in the country fell to 110 million in 2023, down from 112 million in 2022, before rebounding to 125 million in 2024.

Ashish Pherwani, EY India's media and entertainment leader, stated that SVOD is experiencing growth driven by innovations in pricing, bundling, and the availability of multi-language content across India, all of which are further fueled by the rise of connected TV. “We expect SVOD revenues to grow over 10% in 2024 and continue to grow at that rate for the next three years,” he said.

In 2023, the overall SVOD market experienced a temporary slowdown, primarily due to the widespread availability of free live sports and a decline in Disney+ Hotstar's subscriber base following the loss of Indian Premier League (IPL) streaming rights and HBO content to JioCinema.

MPA vice-president Mihir Shah stated, “The SVOD market rebounded in 2024, reaching 125 million subscriptions after a slight dip in 2023. Paid subscriptions are expected to more than double over the next five years, fuelled by strong investments in local content and the introduction of low-cost, ad-supported tiers."

After joining Viacom18 in 2022, JioCinema adopted an aggressive strategy to capture market share by offering premium content, including live sports, for free. However, with Viacom18 now merging with Star India through a joint venture involving Reliance Industries, Walt Disney, and Bodhi Tree Systems, this approach is likely to undergo a shift.

PwC India media advisor Rajesh Sethi stated, "The SVOD base in India grew in 2024, driven by JioCinema's push toward subscriptions and ongoing efforts by Netflix and Prime Video. This base is expected to surge further if premium content, including live sports, shifts to the subscription model. Additionally, the launch of Jio Star could provide a significant boost to SVOD growth."

In the previous year, JioCinema introduced its SVOD service, JioCinema Premium, offering a blend of Indian and international content at introductory prices of Rs 29 per month for a single device and Rs 89 per month for up to four devices. The service rapidly gained popularity, attracting over 15 million paying subscribers within just 100 days.

According to The Ormax OTT Audience Report 2024, which surveyed 12,000 users, India’s OTT audience grew by 14 percent year-on-year, reaching 547.3 million users by the end of 2024. This represents an OTT penetration rate of 38.4 percent.

Industry executives have indicated that Disney Hotstar is anticipated to remain the flagship platform after the merger, with JioCinema likely to be unified into it. However, in a recent interview, Uday Shankar, Vice-chairman of Jio Star, expressed that the company is still evaluating whether to keep the platforms separate or combine them into a single service.

Disney Hotstar leads the streaming market with 36 million subscribers. According to industry estimates, JioCinema has garnered 25 million subscribers while Prime Video and Netflix hold 20 million and 15 million subscribers, respectively.