Active Stocks
Thu Mar 28 2024 15:59:33
  1. Tata Steel share price
  2. 155.90 2.00%
  1. ICICI Bank share price
  2. 1,095.75 1.08%
  1. HDFC Bank share price
  2. 1,448.20 0.52%
  1. ITC share price
  2. 428.55 0.13%
  1. Power Grid Corporation Of India share price
  2. 277.05 2.21%
Business News/ Industry / Media/  Filmmakers split digital streaming rights to maximise revenue
BackBack

Filmmakers split digital streaming rights to maximise revenue

Film trade experts said the new trend has emerged to de-risk high-scale projects and enable better recovery for films with high investments especially since any one platform is unlikely to be able to afford prices high enough to make it viable for the producers

SS Rajamouli’s Telugu period action drama RRR will be available on Netflix in Hindi as well as on ZEE5 in the southern languages.Premium
SS Rajamouli’s Telugu period action drama RRR will be available on Netflix in Hindi as well as on ZEE5 in the southern languages.

NEW DELHI : Producers of big-budget, multilingual films lined up for theatrical releases are selling the digital streaming rights across over-the-top platforms to recoup the investments faster.

For instance, Telugu period action drama RRR, directed by S.S. Rajamouli, will be available on Netflix in Hindi and on ZEE5 in south Indian languages, while sports drama ‘83’ will stream on both Netflix and Disney+ Hotstar.

Film trade experts said the new trend will allow producers to de-risk high-scale projects and allow better recovery of investments, more so, as single platforms are unlikely to offer fees high enough to compensate the producers. Besides, platforms are also looking to focus on specific languages.

“There are pricing issues with big-ticket movies and this is resulting in OTT platforms compromising on the exclusive rights," said Yusuf Shaikh, business head, feature films, at production and distribution house Percept Pictures.

OTT platforms are willing to buy language-specific rights as high-budget movies are once-in-a-year kind of a phenomena and will not be shown on satellite television too soon, said Shaikh.

For instance, RRR, with a budget of 500 crore, is estimated to have made over 300 crore from the sale of satellite and digital rights, while ’83 despite a below-par performance at the box office, is likely to recoup 50 crore and 30 crore from Disney+Hotstar and Netflix, respectively. This will help recover the film’s production cost of 240 crore and the 20 crore spent on advertising and publicity, according to trade website Box Office India.

In September, Thalaivii, starring Kangana Ranaut released in cinemas amid covid-led curbs. The streaming rights of the film, made at a cost of 40-45 crore, was subsequently sold to Netflix and Amazon Prime Video across languages for 55 crore, with a two-week window for the premiere of the Hindi version on Netflix.

While Disney+ Hotstar and Amazon Prime Video did not respond to queries, Netflix declined to comment.

The difference between the acquisition rates of a film that premieres directly on a digital platform and the one streamed after theatrical release is huge, Karan Taurani, senior vice-president, Elara Capital, said.

Splitting rights also allows producers to recover the costs and gives them the confidence to spend more on big projects.

Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lata Jha
"Lata writes about the media and entertainment industry for Mint, focusing on everything from traditional film and TV to newer areas like video and audio streaming services. She loves movies and spends a lot of her free time watching them, which makes her job both fun and a bit of a challenge. Lata tries to find and write about things in the entertainment world that most people don't notice, even though a lot of people in her country are really into movies and entertainment news often just talks about the glamorous side of things. "
Catch all the Industry News, Banking News and Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
More Less
Published: 04 Mar 2022, 02:28 PM IST
Next Story footLogo
Recommended For You
Switch to the Mint app for fast and personalized news - Get App