OTT content spending surges 52% in 2023, driven by sports rights

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₹12,500 crore OTT content spending, according to the latest Ficci EY Media and Entertainment Report. Moreover, while 24% of total OTT costs were allocated to acquiring film rights, only a quarter was spent on original content. However, streaming platforms saw minimal growth in total content hours, holding steady at 3,000 hours compared to the 2022 levels.

Sports rights, synonymous with high capital expenditure and limited monetization, are seasonal, with audiences spread thin across specific categories, players, and matches. In comparison, the cost of producing non-sport original content, such as shows and movies, are nominal. Media and entertainment industry experts said streaming services must revamp their strategies, and invest in more compelling content slates before and after tournaments to stay relevant throughout the year.

“Sports is a category that comes with high input costs because of player fees, and expenses of holding the event," said Sourjya Mohanty, chief operating officer, EPIC ON, an OTT platform owned by IN10 Media Network. "However, there are multiple challenges to it, considering that the audiences are sliced based on interest in particular categories, or when a specific name or state is playing, often resulting in pushback from advertisers," he added. “The cost of entertainment content is nothing compared to sports.

While sports brings in large number of subscribers, it is seasonal while other content is needed to drive profitability, which should be easy to do," Uday Sodhi, senior partner, Kurate Digital Consulting said. The Disney-Reliance joint venture, too, should have enough leverage to drive entertainment value despite the guaranteed focus on sports, said experts. “The competition to establish