Wurl partners with Planetcast International to enable India’s media & entertainment companies to launch FAST channels

Planetcast International, the new division of Planetcast Media Services which has a 25-year heritage in broadcast and media services, and Wurl, a world leader in powering streaming TV, today announces a partnership between the two companies to enable India’s media and entertainment companies to join the Free Ad Supported streaming TV (FAST) revolution.

The partnership between Wurl and Planetcast will enable broadcasters and other content owners to explore the launch of FAST channels in India, capitalizing on the substantial amount of content India’s prolific film and television industry produces. In addition, Wurl and Planetcast will continue to explore other collaborative initiatives, including supporting the launch of Indian content FAST channels internationally in markets that Wurl already support.

“India has an incredibly vibrant media market that Wurl and Planetcast think is perfectly suited to FAST distribution,” says Sanjay Duda, Chief Operating Officer of Planetcast Media Services. “Through Planetcast partnering with Wurl, India’s media and entertainment industry will gain the combination of our local media and international distribution expertise and the AI-driven ad targeting and data smarts of Wurl to make the perfect solution for the launch of Indian FAST channels.”

FAST has enjoyed incredible growth in the US. The nScreen media Getting FAST report forecasts that: FAST revenues will double from 2022 to 2023, FAST ad CPM rates and ad fill-rates are rising, and every major supplier of Smart TV to the North American market now has FAST built-in.

“No one knows India’s media market better than Planetcast, and our strengths focus on powering streaming TV and the technologies needed to successfully launch FAST channels,” says James Grant, SVP Partnerships at Wurl. “Together Planetcast and Wurl are partnering to ensure that Indian channels can reach more markets worldwide through the FAST model, and that the FAST opportunity in India can be explored and given the opportunity to grow as quickly as it has in other markets, including the Americas.” BCS Bureau