Streaming's rush for reach: Platforms tap smaller cities with mass content

India had 125 million OTT subscribers in 2024, that amounts to a reach of about 375 million viewers

The “linearisation” of streaming has begun in earnest. On April 1, Netflix will start streaming the World Wrestling Entertainment, or WWE, in India. This staged, somewhat exaggerated, promotional wrestling drew about 50 million Indians in 2019. Netflix is banking on this “sports entertainment” show, among others, to ramp up its reach (47 million currently) and subscribers (15 million) in the country. Its core remains premium shows such as Delhi Crime or Black Warrant. But the last two years have seen it bring in The Great Indian Kapil Show, Maamla Legal Hai, The Greatest Rivalry — India vs Pakistan, and WWE