Entertainment companies diversify as OTT growth slows
Media firms diversify as theatrical growth slows. Abundantia and Balaji Telefilms explore AI, astrology apps, and live events to engage audiences and boost revenue.
As streaming platforms cut budgets and the theatrical front remains slow, traditional media and entertainment firms, known for film, television, or content production, are rapidly diversifying to cast wider nets in the evolving ecosystem.
While Abundantia Entertainment, known for films like Baby, Airlift and Toilet – Ek Prem Katha, launched a new division dedicated to developing and producing stories powered by artificial intelligence titled Abundantia aiON last month, Ekta Kapoor’s Balaji Telefilms has launched AstroVani, an astrology app and Kutingg, a family-friendly entertainment app offering fiction, non-fiction, short-form videos, and vertical content for a mobile-first audience. Music label Saregama has also forayed into live events, while Banijay Asia, best known for Bigg Boss and MTV Roadies, has partnered with Collective Artists Network to launch a creator-led content and IP engine.
Industry experts say that traditional entertainment, including TV, films, and even long-form OTT, has slowed in growth, while digital engagement has exploded across newer formats. Microdramas, interactive storytelling, and live fan experiences are all ways to keep users engaged within the brand’s world for longer. It is also about building new revenue pools that don’t depend only on ad sales or platform licensing. In practical terms, the consumer gains more options, newer modes of engagement, and formats aligned with their lifestyle—all from the same brand they already trust. That translates into deeper loyalty, a higher share of time, and a stronger brand ecosystem.
Beyond OTT
The media industry is in a fascinating phase of strategic expansion, moving beyond conventional platforms like film and television into emerging spaces such as gaming, live events, music, and AI-driven creation, Vikram Malhotra, founder and CEO, Abundantia Entertainment, said. This move is a direct reaction to the reality of today's consumer, whose engagement spans multiple formats—from watching movies to streaming short stories and interacting with social media creators. “The industry is aligning itself with this fluid multi-experience and consumption pattern," he said.
- Traditional M&E companies are diversifying beyond conventional film or TV production due to reduced streaming budgets and slow theatrical growth.
- Firms are transforming from standalone content creators into 'ecosystem builders,' using unconventional ventures like AI-led creation, astrology apps, and live events to build new revenue avenues.
- The shift is a direct response to the ‘fluid multi-experience and consumption pattern’ of the modern viewer who engages across cinema, long or short-form streaming, podcasts, and social media.
- Strategic alliances are central to this transformation, allowing companies to quickly expand their creative pipelines and monetisation avenues.
- While these new verticals form an exciting ‘new growth layer,’ the primary business challenge is maintaining brand identity and focus while managing the diverse business models and skill sets required for technology, talent, content, and live events.
Through Abundantia aiON, the company is building technology-led efficiencies in creating, development, and post-production that can potentially reduce creative turnaround times by as much as 25-30%, while improving audience alignment at the concept stage itself, Malhotra added.
According to Nitin Burman, group chief revenue officer, Balaji Telefilms, while new verticals are initially inviting bootstrap funding, in the long run, most companies will look at partnerships that can help scale these businesses. “Traditional content creation continues to be core for the company. Most organisations are pivoting and diversifying portfolios. There is now intense competition in production, and with platforms getting merged, budgets for making commissioned content are squeezed. Media and entertainment firms are therefore looking at growth opportunities," Burman said.
Convergence phase
Across the media and entertainment industry, companies are evolving from standalone content creators into ecosystem builders, agreed Deepak Dhar, founder and CEO, Banijay Asia and Endemol Shine India.
“Strategic partnerships have become central to this shift — whether it’s collaborating with format owners to adapt global IPs for local markets, aligning with talent and creator networks to tap the short-form and influencer-driven economy, or working with gaming and esports firms to merge traditional entertainment with interactive experiences. The goal is clear: to diversify creative pipelines, deepen audience engagement, and build multiple monetisation avenues beyond TV and OTT," Dhar added.
While the backbone of the industry remains storytelling, the platforms and formats through which stories reach audiences are rapidly expanding—and companies are investing accordingly, he pointed out.
Industry experts emphasize that partnerships are central to this phase of transformation, as no one entity will be fully equipped to capitalize on this opportunity on its own. These include tech partnerships that drive efficiency, creator alliances that deepen storytelling, and platform alliances that expand reach. Many of these media companies are putting small, experimental investments into new verticals, not all-in bets yet, but serious pilots.
“In terms of priority, these are not replacing core content production, but they are starting to sit right next to it. Think of it as the “new growth layer", where innovation happens. The challenge, though, is focus. Not every brand can stretch itself across too many verticals without diluting its identity. Managing multiple business models, tech, talent, content, and live events needs new skill sets and patient capital," said Charu Malhotra, co-founder and managing director, Primus Partners, a management consultancy firm. Consumers stand to benefit from this trend, seeing familiar brands launch engaging, shorter, and personalized entertainment forms. Nevertheless, the industry faces the challenge of ensuring these new experiments are both innovative and true to the original brand's authenticity, she said.
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