Netflix to keep both dubbing and subtitling options available

Netflix to keep both dubbing and subtitling options available

Two out of every three Sacred Games viewers was outside India.

Todd Yellin

MUMBAI: The fact that India has a higher per cent of mobile streaming compared to the US has caught Netflix’s eye. Speaking at a session moderated by CNN News 18 Editor Anuradha Sengupta on the stage of FICCI Frames 2019, Netflix VP Product Todd Yellin said that despite the liking for the small screens, India’s fondness for the big screen will not fade away.

While Netflix has already delivered hits like Sacred Games in India, the OTT platform will double its investment in the country. He also added in a presentation that the series was a global hit for the service, with two out of three viewers of the show live outside India. On the other hand, Indians are also loving international shows as Bandersnatch was a huge hit here also.

“We don’t care about someone’s gender so we don’t collect it. We don’t care about the age so we don’t collect it. The only data we really care about is taste and we don’t want to stereotype. Internet TV is for everyone to liberate and make the experience greater so they can enjoy entertainment on their control and that’s what we care about,” Yellin commented while asked about the demographic and psychographic profile of Netflix users in the country.

To reach to more people, Netflix is also planning to extend the number of languages in which the content is available. While Orange is the new Black was released in seven languages back in 2013, The Umbrella Academy was released in more than 25 languages six weeks ago.

Along with subtitling, Netflix also wants to keep the dubbing option always available for users given the past data. “45 per cent of people watched Ghoul in English speaking countries with dubbing, 37 per cent with subtitles and 18 per cent with both,” he highlighted.

Although Netflix is becoming unbeatable among OTT platforms, Disney’s entry in the space is likely to pose a challenge. However, the company seems to look at it positively as Yellin said competition motivates the team venturing into more interesting things.

The OTT platform will be doubling down on interactive series also but it won’t necessarily be science fiction or dark. According to Yellin, it could be a wacky comedy or a romance even. With all the plans in store, the next couple of years will be interesting to see how the OTT platform handles its leading position as other big pocket players are stepping in.