Photo credit: Wikipedia
Cord-cutting is still a long way off from becoming mainstream in India. Cable TV is popular, and a patchy internet connection makes sure most streaming apps get stuck till the user is forced to give up and let go.
(Update one day after publishing: Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said on January 6 that the service will launch in 130 new countries, including India.)
This problem is so widespread that even Google had to make special allocations for the Indian viewer, introducing a “watch offline” feature for Youtube where users can download videos and watch them later.
But if Netflix has its way, the days of cable TV may soon be gone from big Indian cities.
Netflix is expected to announce its India launch at the CES this week, say local media reports, where chief executive Reed Hastings is set to deliver a keynote on Jan 6.
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Netflix did not respond to an email seeking comment outside business hours. The company is rumoured to have tied up with an Indian telco for 4G networks – which pretty much points to Airtel.
An Airtel spokesperson did not comment.
Now’s the time
In any case, Netflix had better hurry.
The company missed the boat in China, and it wouldn’t do well to repeat the same mistake in India.
“If you look at it from the market opportunity point of view, it is the right time for Netflix, “ said Tarun Pathak, a senior analyst at Counterpoint Market Research.
“4G will be mainstream in 2016, and content is a huge thing in India right now.”
Bingewatching
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