Online Video Revenue And Industry Employment To Double By 2028, Streaming Economy To Reach $13 Billion

India's video entertainment economy is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 8 per cent, reaching $13 billion by 2028, with streaming video on demand (VOD) anticipated to contribute half of the new revenue growth, according to a report from The Economic Times.

The video entertainment economy includes pay TV, user-generated content (UGC), and premium VOD platforms.

A report, titled “Beyond Screens: Streaming VOD’s Impact on India’s Creative Economy,” projects that premium online video revenue will increase from $1.7 billion in 2023 to $3.7 billion by 2028.

Premium VOD platforms, which offer entertainment, sports, and news content through subscriptions, advertising, and hybrid models, numbered around 60 in India as of 2023.

These platforms spent $2.2 billion on local content in 2023, and content expenditure is expected to reach $2.6 billion by 2028, potentially making up 30 per cent of the video industry’s content investment.

Investment in original online video shows is projected to rise to $1.2 billion by 2028, up from $479 million in 2023. According to the same report, streaming VOD has generated approximately 174,000 direct and indirect jobs, with the potential to nearly double employment opportunities by 2028.

Notably, the impact of streaming VOD stretches beyond the creative industry into related sectors such as telecom, broadband, pay TV, VFX, animation, tourism, and hospitality.

India's top six streaming platforms — Disney+ Hotstar, Prime Video, Netflix, Sony LIV, Zee5, and Voot/Jio Cinema — released about 1,000 original titles, totalling nearly 4,000 hours of content between 2015 and 2023.