"We are way behind YouTube and Hotstar in India": Netflix's Reed Hastings

Netflix released its Q2 results on Monday and due to subscriber numbers falling short, the OTT platform's stock went down by 10 per cent.

Netflix released its Q2 results on Monday and due to subscriber numbers falling short of expectations, the OTT platform's stock went down by 10 per cent. But the company executives were happy with the progress the platform has made in India.

During the investor call, Reed Hastings, founder and chief executive officer, Netflix, said, "We are happy with the progress we are making in India since the time we launched two and half years back. We have a lot of work and opportunity in India."

Reed Hastings

Ted Sarandos

Greg Peters

Adding about where Netflix stands as compared to its competitors, Hastings said, "We are way behind YouTube and Hotstar in India. Those are really the leaders of the internet. There is so much TV viewing at linear TV that could be internet viewing."

In the month of May, Netflix launched Lust Stories, in July, it launched Sacred Games and in August the platform is launching Ghoul.

Talking about Netflix's success, Hastings, said, "Netflix is having great success having established a reputation and going on with triplets like Lust Stories, Sacred Games and Ghoul. We're also getting some nice momentum in India growth. We are still a niche product and have a long way to go in expanding the languages and many other aspects to be a broad Indian product. In terms of our reach, I am very pleased with what we have."

On the success of Sacred Games, Ted Sarandos, chief content officer, Netflix, said, "In India, we saw great success with Sacred Games. We have been producing shows that are incredibly relevant in their home territories and the nice windfall is that they get viewed all over the world. It is accelerating the brand perception of Netflix as someone who produces content you care about in every part of the world."

When discussing the upcoming show, Sarandos, said, "We have Ghoul coming up in India in August and these are shows that are produced at a level that is really high and get consumers really excited about Netflix."

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According to Greg Peters, chief product officer, Netflix, the platform is far from reaching the limit when it comes to the addressable market given the pricing structures Netflix has right now. "We have a lot of room to grow in a recently affluent part of the society in India and markets around the world. We are constantly testing our pricing models and strategy that works best around the world and finding what features we can add that are revenue positive and have a consumer-friendly kind of approach," he concludes.