Why ALTBalaji's Pantvaidya won't spend Rs 50 crore to acquire film rights

Instead, the company CEO is betting more and more money on creating new shows. The strategy is working. Turnover is doubling every year and customer acquisition costs have dropped.

In India, most video streaming platforms are fighting to get a share of the consumers' wallet. To attract subscribers, the likes of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+ Hotstar are now aggressively acquiring movies that are yet to be released in cinema halls. It is an expensive proposition that guarantees only three hours of engagement, something Nachiket Pantvaidya, CEO, ALTBalaji, and Group COO, Balaji Telefilms, says he isn't chasing.

Launched by Ekta Kapoor in 2017, ALTBalaji is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Balaji Telefilms, a content production powerhouse that reported a revenue of Rs 576.63 crore in the financial year that ended on March 31, 2020.

ALTBalaji is known for its volume game, and some of its titles are streaming their fourth season. 'Test Case', 'Bose: Dead/Alive', 'M.O.M', and the recent one starring Karisma Kapoor titled 'Mentalhood' are some of the marquee shows streaming on the platform. Then there are crowd-pullers like 'Kehne Ko Humsafar Hain' and 'XXX' (Season 3), and 'Gandi Baat' (Season 4). Overall, it is a content library with over 60 shows.

Instead of going after movies, Pantvaidya says he'd rather focus on series as they help in "forming a habit". In an exclusive interview with afaqs!, he talks about the growth registered over the years, content strategy, and the change in consumption behaviour.

Also Read: "Competition is everywhere": Nachiket Pantvaidya, ALTBalaji