Netflix is on a mission to win over customers in India, and its latest effort has been to by launch a low-priced mobile-only pack for the Indian market at Rs 199 per month. The new subscription is limited to a single screen, and is offered in Standard Definition (480p) only. Although the viewers can enjoy the content on tablets, certain features like Screen Casting are missing. This means you won’t be able to cast or mirror your screen to a TV. Indian users will be able to continue their subscription when traveling outside the country.
Netflix began testing a low-cost subscription package for the Asian market late last year. In a press conference held at New Delhi today, officials stated that they have no plans to introduce this offer in other regions.
The official press release read, “We are excited to introduce a new mobile plan for India at Rs. 199/month. Members can stream our content uninterrupted, in Standard Definition, on one cellphone or tablet at a time. This is our fourth subscription plan for the Indian market. It is on offer alongside our existing Basic, Standard and Premium packs”.
Ajay Arora, Director of Product Innovation at Netflix said, “Indian Netflix users browse through our content primarily on their cellphones. The volume is significantly higher than anywhere else on the planet. We believe that with the new subscription plan, our content will be more accessible on the mobile platform.”
The registration process is quite simple. Users need to download the app or visit www.netflix.com. Select the Rs. 199 plan and add an account. New users will get a one month free subscription, and can upgrade to any of the other packs at any time. In addition to the new plan, Netflix has adjusted the prices of the other plans as well. The Basic Plan is now available for Rs 499 per month, the Standard Plan costs Rs 649 per month, while the Premium Plan is priced at Rs 799 per month.
According to the FICCI-EY 2019 report, Indians spend 30 percent of their time and 70 percent of their mobile data on entertainment. Netflix plans to attract a major portion of this market share. It has been investing heavily in the Indian entertainment industry for the past few years, releasing original movies and series. It has also made certain upgrades to its Android app so that it loads quicker on low-specced smartphones.
Netflix faces tough competition in India from Hotstar, which offers some of its content for free. The announcement comes shortly after Netflix revealed a decline in their customer base in the US.