In Conversation With Uday Sodhi, Sony Pictures Network

Uday Sodhi takes us through the digital landscape of the country and how SonyLIV is still standing tall in the OTT sphere

Q. SonyLIV was the first OTT streaming service in India and remains one of the top OTT video apps, offering content to more than 30 million viewers. How instrumental has it been in piloting the OTT landscape in India?

A. We’ve been one of the innovators in this business. And today, we serve around 50-60 million users a month. Our journey started off in a small way and this was in the 3G era where we used to run most of our content on the app and website at that point in time. And these were the early days of the smartphone and the app and as time went by in 2014, we also did large scale international events like the FIFA World Cup.

Back in 2014, we were probably the first app to stream an international event. So, we’ve done a lot of stuff since then, in terms of introducing consumers to consuming content on the mobile and on the go, both in terms of entertainment sports and movies. We are one of the only ones to start off with original content.

So, in terms of leadership, we’ve been the early movers and pioneers in this business in India and we continue to raise the quality bar, offer exceptional customer experience and deliver the width and depth of content across sports, entertainment and movies.

Q. What were the initial hurdles? How did you manage to build a loyal user base?

A. The initial hurdle was more around our heavy dependence on mobile phones- their quality, ability to stream and the infrastructure. So, before 4G became a standard practice or a standard norm, there were significant challenges on the infrastructure and mobile phones.

I think what happened with 4G coming in, we’ve seen a significant increase in the penetration of 4G compatible devices in the quality of devices has increased and the prices have fallen significantly. And as a result, we’ve seen good quality phones at a much lower price. That has helped improve the experience for users with 4G JIO and Airtel investing a lot of money on 4G. I think the quality of connectivity has improved significantly over the last few years and that has allowed us to stream some of the best content for consumers.

So today, for example, we’re able to stream some of the best international shows and the quality that any global platform would be able to offer to the users. We’re able to offer services on connected TV Firesticks, Chromecast, Apple TV, and all sorts of devices. We are currently running about 14 different apps and all this is because of the advancements in various forms of connectivity technology streaming technology and mobile phones themselves.

Q. Sports was a major gainer in 2018. What other trends did you observe last year and how do you see this year shaping up?

A. For me, the big changes that we are currently seeing or the big trends that we’ve won is on the language side and I think the beneficiaries of 4G are going beyond just one area in big towns. We will see more adoption of 4G from people whose native language is probably not Hindi or English. So, we will witness a significantly larger adoption from their own language communities which I think is a big one.

The second big thing is that the penetration of phones is increasing. We are to see more and more 4G connected phones in the hands of younger audiences. Even within the family, we’ll start seeing penetration of phones going beyond male members. Plus, there will be a significant movement on the vernacular content side.

Q. According to a report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG), SonyLIV witnessed a rise of 7X in total time spent on the platform and grew by 3X in terms of MAUs (monthly active users) 2018. In terms of the content, what different are you offering than your competitors? What does your content strategy look like?

A. Our content is significantly different because we don’t offer the content that anybody else has. Our content is the Sony Network content that nobody else has.  So fundamentally, each player in the market has their own different content.

Q. With the OTT game getting strong each day, debates on its controversial content have stemmed quite a few point of views. Should these platforms enjoy absolute freedom in the content they stream or steer a middle course and work under set guidelines, what are your comments on this? Also, what do you think about self-regulation carried out by OTT platforms?

A. OTT industry has got together and put together a framework under which we think we can do self-regulation of the content this is as per the law of the land and as a maturing ecosystem we want to ensure that you know what we are providing the right content and informing the consumer what to expect as part of the content. What we’re trying to do is to ensure that the content that is provided on our portals or apps is correctly rated so the consumer knows what the content is and what to expect in the content and also make sure that there is no inappropriate content. And, I think this is the objective which every OTT player has.

Just like the advertising industry has a very good mechanism, we want to ensure that there is a mechanism on the OTT side also which ensures that there is a certain quality of content that goes on.

Q. How has your experience been in the regional space? What further innovations are on the cards to serve them better?

A. We’re doing a lot of work on the Bangla and the Marathi side. Because we have TV channels in those markets, we’re working with them. For example, on the Marathi side to launch a ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ or what they call ‘Kaun Hoeel Crorepati’ game on SonyLIV. This means when the game is going to be played on the Sony Marathi-channel, consumers can play the game on their mobile phones too. So, there’s going to be a play-along game for consumers. The program starts at the end of the month and you’ll see a long game at that point in time. So we’re really going deeper with not only content, but also innovation around the content.