Netflix on November 19 announced that it will host 'StreamFest' in India on December 5-6. During the two-day event the content streaming giant will allow non-subscribers to experience the service for free.
The move is aimed at acquiring new users to Netflix, which is competing against Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar and Zee5, among others, in the growing over the top (OTT) market in India.
Anyone in India can watch all films, series, documentaries and reality shows available on Netflix for the two days, Monika Shergill, Netflix India Vice President (Content), said in a blog post.
The company has said that current non-users can sign up with their name, email or phone number and start streaming without any payment.
"Anyone who signs in during StreamFest gets one stream in standard definition so, no one else can use the same login information to stream... And to make sure everyone who comes in gets the best experience, we will have to limit the number of StreamFest viewers,” Shergill said.
"So, during StreamFest, if you see a message saying "StreamFest is at capacity", don't worry. We'll let you know as soon as you can start streaming," Shergill explained.
Users logging into StreamFest will be able to access all features that current subscribers enjoy: creating profiles (including Kids' profiles), setting parental controls, browsing in Hindi, adding series or films to 'My List', watching with subtitles or dubs, using ‘Smart Downloads’ on mobile and will be able to see the ‘Top 10 list’, the company said.
Netflix had 195.15 million paid subscribers worldwide as of the third quarter of 2020. The California-based company – which started its operations in India in 2016 – does not share country-specific subscriber numbers.
Led by Reed Hastings and Ted Sarandos, Netflix has been aggressively expanding its presence in the Indian market. It has been rolling out localised content and adding international titles as it looks to woo new users in the country. India has seen massive surge in online video consumption over the last few years. The trend has accelerated further since the lockdown.
In 2019, Netflix had launched a mobile phone-only plan in India – a first for the company globally.
