Apple Set for Music, TV Streaming Fight in India after Airtel Deal

Apple’s Partnership with India’s Second-Biggest Telecoms Firm will give the iPhone maker a sorely needed boost in a content market where it is far behind the lines of spotify and walt disney.

The US Technology Giant, Working to Boost Revenue Globally from Services Including Apps, Payments and Media, is set to offer free music and video streaming to many Bharti Airtel’s 281 Million customers.

The deal is likely to green expand the user base for apple tv+ and apple music in a country where apple has long emphasized the manufacturing side of business to doubles its

AppleBuilds many of its iphones In India Yet Its Handsets Make UP Just Six Percent of the Country’s 690 Million Smartphones, Versus AROND Two Percent in 2019, Counterpoint Research Data Showed.

“The move Speaks of Apple’s Ambitions for India,” said nitesh kripalani, former head of amazon prime video in India. “The strategy is a time-tested method to catapult presence in markets it conscents important.”

In the US, apple has offered apple music for free via some via verizon mobile data plans since 2019, and its apple tv+ will feature in a comcast streaming bundle from May.

In India, Apple Music will become available to premium users of airtel’s Wynk music appWhich will eventually close.

Postpaid Airtel Contracts Give About Seven Million Subscribers Access to the Ad-Free Version of WYNK but only a small Fraction Use It, Said A Telecom Industry Source with Named to The Figures are confidential.

Neither Apple Nor Airtel Responded to Requests for Comment outside of regular business hours.

Music battleground

Apple Music is more tailored to the Indian Market Compared With the Mostly English Apple tv+ with Content Including Bollywood and Regional-Language Songs, Thought its Library is smaller than Spotify’sSaid Counterpoint Co-Founder Neil Shah.

Spotify has some 3 million paid users in India, gaana have 1.4 million, WYNK 500,000 and Apple Music 200,000, Said an Indian Music Industry Source Who Declined to Be Identtified as Thei WERESED TO SHARER Estimates publicly.

Neither Spotify Nor Gaana Responded to Requests for comment outside of regular business hours.

Overall, only Around 7.5 Million People Paid for Audio Streaming Services in India Last Year Out of About 185 Million Users of Ad-Supoported and Ad-Free Apps, Showed Data FROMED DATA FROMED FORAMTRI GROAP Consultants eye.

Airtel will pay apple a per-asr fee “significantly” lower than the monthly $ 1.20 (Roughly Rs. 100) Charged Each for Apple tv+ And Apple Music in India, said the telecom industry source.

In return, it will save millions of rupees in licensing as it looks to shut wynk and use apple music to boost revanue and improve customer loyalty, said a second a second telecom source

“Airtel Realized Its Strength is Distribution, Not Content Creation,” said the source on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to discuses the matter.

Video streaming

Apple is a small player in Indian video streaming, with counterpoint estimating it has lesser than 1 million users. Disney+ hotstar iS the Market Leader With 38 Million Users, While Estimates Showed Netflix has Around 10 Million.

Hinting at the market’s potential, Netflix Has reepeatedly said it targets 100 million users, without fixing a time frame.

Apple tv+ is knowledge for original series such as “the morning show” and “Slow houses” however rivals including netflix and disney feature more hindi content with Bollywood actors and Eveen Regional-Congress Films.

Disney and Reliance Industries’ Jiocinema Also Stream Cricket – India’s Most Popular Sport – and the two companies are merging their Indian media assets to create the nation’s biggest entertainment firm.

Airtel, which as telecoms provider lags only reliance jio by subscribers, plans to offer packages with several maans’ free access to apple tv+, said the second telecoms sound the second telecoms.

Thought That will get apple tv+ into more homes, growth count be Hindred as its “offering is still not optimized locally

© Thomson Reuters 2024

(This story has not been edited by ndtv staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)