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Horror comedy ‘Phone Bhoot’ now available on Amazon Prime Video

This April, Amazon Prime Video announced the launch of Prime Video Store, a transaction-video-on-demand (TVoD) offering.
Horror comedy ‘Phone Bhoot’ now available on Amazon Prime Video
Phone Booth stars stars Katrina Kaif, Ishaan Khatter and Siddhant Chaturvedi. (Photo: Twitter @PrimeVideoIN)

Last Updated: 03.52 PM, Dec 23, 2022

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NEW DELHI: Horror comedy Phone Bhoot is now available for rent on Amazon Prime Video. The film stars Katrina Kaif, Ishaan Khatter and Siddhant Chaturvedi. This April, Amazon Prime Video announced the launch of Prime Video Store, a transaction-video-on-demand (TVoD) offering that will allow Prime subscribers as well as non-subscribers to access movies on rent. Users have to click on a separate tab on the app and website to access the pay-per-view service, with prices ranging from 69 to 499 for one-time access. The film will be available for 30 days but must be viewed within a 48-hour window.

To be sure, the pay-per-view model continues to remain niche in India. Media industry experts point out that these services offer limited choice of content, making it less appealing. Further, as most consumers have resumed outdoor entertainment activities and many have ongoing annual OTT subscriptions, pay-per-view has not emerged as a preferred mode to watch content. It is also unlikely to challenge the subscription or free model in terms of reach.

TVoD services are still considered niche in India because they are not as widely available as other video content platforms, such as SVoD or AVoD. TVoD services tend to be offered by specific content providers rather than through generalist platforms. It may mean that they have a more limited selection of content, which can make them less appealing to users. SVoD and AVoD stand for subscription video-on-demand and advertising-based video-on-demand respectively.

As concerns about the pandemic have lessened, consumers have largely returned to old habits. Today, Indian audiences are visiting theatres for the experience of watching a film, and most consumers already have ongoing subscriptions to all the major OTT platforms. TVoD is more premium and thus, by definition, not mass market and unlikely to challenge subscription or free distribution models in terms of reach.

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