Netflix Tests Cheap Entry-Level Plan In India

Streaming giant Netflix has come up with yet another subscription plan for its Indian users, as it looks to widen access to the platform with payment plans tailored to needs of the Indian audience. 

The OTT platform is testing a ‘Mobile+’ plan at INR 349/month. Subscribers to the plan would be able to watch high definition (HD) content on the platform, on a single device at a time.

“We launched the Mobile Plan in India to make it easier for anyone with a smartphone to enjoy Netflix. We want to see if members like the added choice this offer brings. We’ll only roll it out long-term if they do,” a Netflix spokesperson told the Economic Times..

Netflix presently offers four subscription plans in India, ranging from INR 199 – 799/month. While two of the plans offer standard definition (SD) content on one screen, the other two offer HD content on 2-4 screens, including television and computer screens. 

Recently, the company also signed a deal for an entire floor with WeWork’s Nesco coworking centre, purchasing new office space in Goregaon, Mumbai. The new office space will be used by Netflix for visual effects work, a domain witnessing increasing demand across the country. The work will be carried out in collaboration with another company, Anibrain.  

Netflix also owns a flexible workspace for 100 seats at The Executive Center at Maker Maxity in the Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) and a 9,000 sq ft separate office in the same complex.

The rapidly expanding presence of Netflix in terms of workspaces, and the rolling out of India-specific subscription plans, have a lot to do with the company’s India outlook. Inc42 had earlier reported that the company was in talks with Network18’s Viacom18 entertainment network for a multi-year partnership to source at least 10 shows, mainly in Hindi. 

In the last few years, the global video streaming company has been betting big on India — in terms of money as well as the content strategy for Indian viewers. Last year, Netflix founder and CEO Reed Hastings had said that the company would invest INR 3000 Cr to produce original content for the Indian market over 2019-20.