Tata Play adds gaming to OTT, DTH services

Direct-to-home (DTH) broadcast service operator Tata Play on Friday said it will add gaming to its portfolio along with its existing over-the-top (OTT) content streaming subscription services. In partnership with online casual gaming startup Gamezop, the games will be available through the Tata Play Binge app, and users will not need to download them additionally or individually.

The Tata Play Binge app currently offers single subscription plans for 17 OTT streaming platforms, including Sony Liv, Disney+ Hotstar and ZEE5. Gamezop’s gaming offerings will join this portfolio of subscription plans, priced between 59 more 299 per month, depending on the number of streaming platforms a user wants to subscribe to.

The move marks the growing proliferation of online gaming in the casual gaming space as well. On March 14, telecom operator Vodafone Idea announced a partnership with gaming firm Nazara Technologies to add gaming to its value-added services experience. Through this partnership, the telco added both free games that can be streamed from within its ‘Vi’ mobile app, or downloaded in ‘Gold’ and ‘Platinum’ tiers for a fee.

On 26 July, an OTT industry report by Media Partners Asia (MPA) stated that the domestic video streaming market could grow to $7 billion in the next five years. India could account for roughly a tenth of the Asia-Pacific OTT market, which is estimated to see total revenues of around $73 billion in the same time frame.

Meanwhile, online gaming has been recognized as one of the top sunrise sectors in India. A January 12 report by Data.ai, erstwhile App Annie, placed India among the top markets for app downloads, but significantly lower in terms of user spend on apps and games. However, 75% of the top 10 revenue generating apps in India were games, according to the report, showing the potential of the sector. The Local Report