IAA Conversations discusses future of OTT

By A Correspondent

The India Chapter of International Advertising Association (IAA) organiseda new edition of ‘IAA Conversations’ with Ajit Mohan, CEO, Hotstar and Ashish Bhasin, Chairman  & CEO South Asia – Dentsu Aegis Network in Mumbai last week. The session was moderated by Megha Tata, COO, BTVI.

Underscoring the people’s appetite for video consumption is on a rise and smartphones accelerate this possibility, Mohan said: “The myth that small screen may not be good for long content viewing is slowly breaking. The power of accessible, curated real stories online is strengthened through technology. OTT has lent us the ability to leverage stories and transform experience. OTT has helped to marry the engagement ability of a television with the consumer understanding of OTT. Cricket has helped people to come to this platform.”

Bhasin said that tectonic shifts are happening online, stating: “Where there are eyeballs there go the numbers. 13-14 per cent market is digital. Video consumption will increase with smart phones. As of now there is a 22-24 per cent penetration. In India every medium holds the potential to grow. The big problem in the ecosystem for the medium to grow is the standardisation of currency to measure multimedia reach.”

Said Ramesh Narayan, President, IAA India Chapter the event:“As a responsible industry association, the India chapter of the IAA has found this a great way of engaging the youth and at the same time amplifying the message on a national basis.”