Netflix has officially launched a mobile-only plan in India at the rate of Rs. 199 ($2.89), after several months of trials. This plan is the fourth which the company will introduce in the country, in addition to the existing basic which goes for Rs. 499 ($7.24), standard Rs. 649 ($9.41), and premium Rs. 799 ($11.59).
According to Netflix, this new plan is 'Made for India' and is only available for mobile and tablet users. That is, mobile and tablet users will be able to watch Netflix content (one mobile/ one tablet at a time) in SD with a 480p quality. There is not support for casting on TV in this low priced plan.
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Netflix says that it gets more signups on mobile in India than any where in the world. With data consumption in India at its peak, Netflix introduced the India exclusive plan to better compete with other streaming services like Amazon's Prime Video and Hotstar.
"Our members in India watch more on their mobiles tan member anywhere in the world - and they love to download our shows and films. We believe this new plan will make Netflix even more accessible and better suit for people who like to wathc on their smartphones or tablets - both on the go and at home," said Ajay Arora, Director, Product Innovation, Netflix.
During the test period of this Netflix plan, the company charged Rs. 250 ($3.63) for it. However, the company had a rethink over the price since strong such as Hotstar charges Rs. 299 per month, and Amazon charges just Rs. 129 per month for its video and music streaming services with its Prime membership.
"We believe this plan, which will launch in Q3, will be effective way to introduce a larger number of people in India to Netflix and to further expand our business in a market where Pay TV ARPU is low (below $5). We will continue to learn more after launch of this plan," Netflix said in its quarterly letter to shareholders.