This Frost & Sullivan whitepaper produced for Convergence India provides an overview of trends that are driving the country's telecom and media industries. For those who want a quick guide how the telecom industry is shaping up with consolidation, key market shares, technology evolution, OTT revolution, this can be useful.

1. Outlook for IndianTelecom and
Broadcast Industry
Connectivity and Convergence to Advance with the Help of Adoption of
New AgeTechnologies in India
An Exclusive Whitepaper by Frost & Sullivan - Knowledge Partner at
March 07-09, 2018 – Pragati Maidan, New Delhi

2. Outlook for Indian Telecom and Broadcast Industry
2
© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
FOREWORD
The world is rapidly moving from the digital paradigm to the era of Internet of Everything.
Convergence is now a reality, riding on top of widespread connectivity. Access to
information is endless and instantaneous.Yet there is a lop sided manner in which business
is growing. Macroeconomic conditions such as recession, political uncertainty, as well as
the impact of digitization on traditional businesses led to a 3.6% GDP growth globally in
2017.
India’s economy demonstrated sustained momentum driven by strong fundamentals and
prudent economic, fiscal and social policies, as well as consumer confidence in the
country. While there have been events leading to short term challenges – demonetization,
GST roll out, and more recently, large defaulters of bank loans - the outlook for India’s
industry and social growth is positive for the next three years.
However, the key to India’s growth today is firmly linked to technology and connectivity.
India’s Internet user base is the second largest after China. It grew from about 380 million
in 2016 to about 450 million in 2017. According to a report by NASSCOM, India is
expected to have 730 million Internet users by FY 2020 with 60% penetration and 75%
of new user growth expected to come from rural areas. Almost 77% of urban users and
92% of rural users consider a mobile phone as the primary device for accessing Internet.
And yet, there are gaps. Fixed broadband access is less than 20% across the country. India’s
share ofWi-Fi hotspots per population is less than 1/1000 as compared to 1/150 globally.
In 2016, India had only 31,500 public Wi-Fi hotspots in comparison to nearly 10 million
and 5.5 million in US and UK, respectively.
For the next two years more than data, data access and connectivity will be the oil for
overall country and industry growth.The Government of India has emphasized on building
the connectivity layer and launched new programs to enable connectivity in rural India.
Parallelly across telecom and media sectors, while there is enthusiasm among companies
about the opportunities that India’s vast population presents, there is also concern about
sourcing the impetus to drive the much required investment in infrastructure to support
larger scale of services.

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With the investment environment more friendly towards smaller technology start-ups,
larger incumbents in the sector are looking inwards and considering consolidation, while
private companies are considering going public.
Technology spending will receive a boost in 2018 and 2019. Corporates are finding ways
to separate their business imperatives, and modern day business requirements cannot be
driven without investment in new-age technologies. Hence, there is higher consideration
for cloud based services, cyber security, software defined networking, artificial intelligence,
machine learning and over the top applications. Technologies that enable efficient and
effective utilization of resources and leverage user data to redefine services and offerings
are gaining traction.
This Frost & Sullivan whitepaper analyzes latest market trends and captures the industry
outlook for the telecom and media industries. Frost & Sullivan is proud to be the
Knowledge Partner for the 26th Convergence India exhibition, trade show, and
conference. For years, the show has brought together several international technology
companies as well as end users in India who work together to adapt modern day
requirements of digital and connected environments.
Vidya S. Nath
Senior Research Director, Digital Media Practice,
Frost & Sullivan

4. Outlook for Indian Telecom and Broadcast Industry
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© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction ..................................................................................................................5
The Indian Telecom Industry ..................................................................................6
Outlook for 2018 to 2025 ........................................................................................9
Video Industry in India............................................................................................14
Digitilization of Pay TV Services.............................................................................15
Market Trends: Changing Video Viewing Landscape .............................................16
Technology Adoption Trends ..................................................................................19
Outlook .....................................................................................................................22
Conclusion ...................................................................................................................25

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Introduction
With a population of 1.342 billion, India’s diverse economic, political, cultural and social environment offers
immense opportunities for the media and ICT industries.Though the average broadband speed is 4.9 Mbps,
much lower than world average, and penetration of mobile and fixed broadband services is still under 30%,
network infrastructure is rapidly improving and this will in turn boost data services. Continued focus on
Digital India and BharatNet programs will aid in inclusive growth of the market.
India is the world’s second largest TV market, with nearly 190 million TV households (Cable, Direct to Home
{DTH}, and terrestrial).Yet, there is room to grow as TV penetration is at 76%, out of which only 66% of the
households have a pay TV subscription. Despite being a mature market, Pay TV Services continues to rapidly
grow, driven by higher adoption of HD services.
Exhibit 1: Key Market Indicators, India, 2016
Note: Per capita income is for FY 2017 as per IMF data.Average Broadband speed is for Q1 2017
Source: Frost & Sullivan,Yral Social Media Report 2016
Image Source: www.narendramodi.in and Art of Living
Key market Indicators, India, 2016 >60% of the population are above 15 years
1.342
Population (Bn)
1,709.39
GDP per capita
(USD)
27 34
45.08
27 34
1,611.4
Per Capita
Income(USD)
74.04
Adult Literacy Rate
(%)
Penetration (%)
27.34
7.45
17.9
27.34
• TV Households
(HH) 76.0
• Satellite TV 37.0
• Pay TV 66.4
• Digital TV 51.6
Media 10.3
• Mobile 87.18
• Mobile Broadband
29.2
• Fixed Broadband
1 3
65 years and
over
55-64 years 25-54 years 15-24 years 0-14 years
• Active Social
1.3
4.9
Average Broadband Speed (Mbps)
Digital India Soft Power Inclusive Growth
Digital India: Digital Infrastructure to
be the backbone of development
Promotion of International Yoga
day and building diplomatic and
cultural relations
Economic and social inclusion

6. Outlook for Indian Telecom and Broadcast Industry
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© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
The Indian Telecom Industry

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The Indian Telecom Industry: Preparing for the Next Inflection Point
“In the last one and a half years, telecom operators have realized that data consumption is the game changer
for their business.Traditional telecom networks are designed for voice and related traffic with some elements
of data in it. But now with the proliferation of data traffic, the approach to building and managing the networks
will differ. Operators have started acquiring systems and know-how to understand the data services delivery
and experience.They have started investing in software to provide high end automation and analytics that
will in turn help them to improve quality of services and monetize data more effectively.”
Manish Varma, Head of Nokia Software, India Market
Till 2015 telecom bore the burden of a legacy infrastructure that was designed for voice as the dominant
service. Data services were just considered as value addition. Soon it became imperative to analyze how
networks behave with data-intensive traffic, and to address challenges related to customer acquisition and
retention.With the proliferation in the number of data based applications, there is a constant need for new
tools and solutions for analyzing this paradigm.
Exhibit 02: Network Technology Adoption, India, 2015-2025
Source: Frost & Sullivan
Thus, telecom operators integrate new age technologies such as automation, robotics, Machine Learning
(ML),Artificial Intelligence (AI), network virtualization, software defined networks (SDN) and self-optimising
networks (SON) to address the current challenges as well as make the networks future-proof. Telecom
operators have embraced these technologies at various levels of maturity and will expand their adoption
based on the demands of the existing systems and development of advanced service capabilities.
• Real time machine
learning and artificial
intelligence
• 5G Commercialization
• 5G adoption with
established use cases
• Advanced Machine
Learning(ML) and AI
• Software Defined
Telecom Networks:
Cloudification of both• Predictive Analytics Cloudification of both
VoLTE and traditional
voice
• Self-Organising
Networks for 5G
Predictive Analytics
• Robotic Process
Automation (RPA)
• Virtualise Voice over
LTE (VoLTE)
• Multi-standard networks
• Considering Software
Defined Networks as a
solution for increased
d ff d b l
• Uni standards/ Bi-
standard Networks
Ad i f IT Cl d • 5G Roll-out
• Dynamic Orchestration
• Basic Machine Learning
and Artificial Intelligence
(AI)
data traffic and viability
for 5G transition
• Considering shifting
networks to cloud native
rather than just
cloudification
• Adoption of IT Cloud
(More virtualization than
cloud)
• Self-Organising
Networks (SON): First
St (AI)cloudification
• SON for 4G
• Virtual Network
Functions Orchestration
(VNF)
Step

8. Outlook for Indian Telecom and Broadcast Industry
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© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
“In the last three to four quarters, there has been a dramatic shift in the mindset of service provider CXOs.
This shift is to accelerate the deployment of new technologies like automation (AI/VR), NFV, Cloud, etc., in
order to transform their core network architecture to be digital ready. This will lead to improved service
agility, better network performance, and great customer experience.”
Sanjay Kaul, Managing Director, Service Provider Business, Cisco India & SAARC
The approach to technology adoption and integration has matured among telecom operators.With a focused
eye on monetization opportunities, most investments in technology are considered carefully. Telecom
operators in India are investing in infrastructure to improve the network capacity, quality, the reach, and to
make their networks 5G ready. Bharti Airtel is investing INR 250 billion (USD 3.9 billion) a quarter, on its
networks to speed up the expansion of its 4G mobile broadband network in India. Vodafone invested INR
700 crore in the North East in the last one year and is expected to ramp up the investment in 2018.
Exhibit 03: Evolution of Telecom Services, India, 2000-2025
Note: Era refers to the prominence of a particular technology in the period. More than one technology can coexist.As explained in the
accompanying text, 2G, 3G and 4G are expected to coexist.
Source: Frost & Sullivan
Era of 2G Era of 3G Era of 4G Era of 5G
Internet of
Things
Internet of
Things
Home
Automation
IP Video IP VideoIP Video IP Video
Augmented
Reality/Virtual
Reality
Augmented
Reality/Virtual
Reality
Augmented
Reality/Virtual
Reality
Data driven
Services
Data driven
Services
Data driven
Services
Data driven
Services
Data driven
Services
Data driven
Services
Voice over IP Voice over IP
Voice over
LTE
Voice over
LTE
Voice over
LTE
2010 2017 2025
VoiceVoice VoiceVoiceVoice VoiceVoice Voice
DataData DataData DataData Data
2010 2017 2025
Higher Revenue Generating Medium Revenue Generating Lower Revenues Generating

9. Outlook for 2018 to 2025
Consolidation to Come a Full Circle
After 2000, the telecom competitive landscape consisted of seven telecom operators. However, the market
landscape presented challenges - intense competitive pricing, expensive licenses of 2G and 3G spectrum, and
accelerating infrastructure costs, driving several operators to consider mergers. Eventually, the entry of
Reliance Jio in 2016 served as a tipping point to trigger a major consolidation process in the telecom industry.
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“Transformation to a full cloud network has become the consensus among
operators worldwide. Almost all operators have started or planned to start
deploying SDN and NFV. Especially in a disruptive market like India, operators
are forced to rethink and rearchitect network technology, business process and
partnership models. SDN and NFV will give us new ways to design, build and
operate networks, especially the core network, which will have capabilities of
quick delivery & short time to market, openness for service innovation, stateless
design for enhanced application reliability, and simplified operation and
maintenance for improving operational efficiency.”
Nitin Jain, CISO (Chief Information & Security Officer) - ZTE Telecom India Ltd.
“On the adoption of cloud, we
expect that in the course of
next two years the operators
will be able to implement
telecom cloud where both
data driven VoLTE and
traditional voice will be
virtualized.”
Manish Varma, Head of
Nokia Software, India Market
“We believe that Digital is the
way forward for most of the
carriers and enterprises in
India and this will be mostly
done by adopting a cloud
architecture which will
support upcoming technologies
like 5G, IoT, AI etc.”
Abhinav Verma, Marketing
Expert, Huawei
Cloud becomes central to telecom architecture

10. Outlook for Indian Telecom and Broadcast Industry
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© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
Exhibit 04: Major Mergers and Acquisitions in Telecom Industry, India, 2016-2017
Source: Economic Times, IBEF and Frost & Sullivan
Exhibit 05:Telecom Subscriber Market Share Before and After Major
Mergers and Acquisitions, India, 2017
Source:TRAI and Frost & Sullivan
Note:The pie for market share before mergers represent the data for the quarter July-September 2017. For simplicity the market share of
the companies has been maintained and the share of merged and acquired companies has been added to represent the market share after
major mergers and acquisitions. Others include MTNL, Systema and Quadrant.
It is expected that in 2018 the impact of consolidation activities will be felt by various stakeholders in the
ecosystem.
Before Mergers and Acquisition After Mergers and Acquisitions
T l Oth
[CATEGORY
NAME]
[PERCENTA
GE]
Reliance
6.08%
Tata
3.87%
Telenor
3.81%
Others
0.90%
Bharti Airtel
+ Telenor +
Tata
BSNL
9.83%
Aircel
7.36%
Others
0.90%
Aircel
7.36%
Tata
31.38%
R li +
Vodafone
17.21%
BSNL
9.83%
Reliance +
Reliance Jio
17.56%
Idea
15.76%
Reliance Jio
11.49% Vodafone +
Idea
32.96%
Year Acquirer Target Stakes/ Divisions Value
2016 Bharti Airtel Videocon 800 MHz spectrum in 6 circles USD 660 Million
2017 Bharti Airtel Telenor Infrastructure and Contracts N/A
2017 Bharti Airtel
Consumer mobile
businesses of Tata Telecom
Cash less deal
2017 Vodafone Idea
Vodafone will have 45.1% stakes
Idea promoters will have 26.1%stakes
Idea Public Share Holders will have
28.9%stakes
USD 23 Billion
2017 Reliance Jio Reliance Communications
Jio will buy spectrum, towers and fibre
and wireless infrastructure
USD 3.75 Billion
2017 IDFC Alternatives
Ascend Telecom
Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd.
33 % Stakes USD 54.29 Million

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New Avenues for Revenue
• Enterprises seek much more than just data connectivity services today, and that has in turn
forced telecom operators to revisit their value proposition for offering IoT based services.
Over the forecast period, several of them will evolve into stronger system integrators,
business consultants, and perhaps even IT service providers. Opportunities are abound in
healthcare, IT, cloud, energy management, automotive and education sectors.
• Small and Medium scale enterprises (SME) demand plug and play services for digitization
of their work flows and operations. There will be simplification of business models to target
this segment and several off-the-shelf services. Telecom operators will need to widen their
partnership with technology providers to ensure that this segment is optimally captured.
• The Government and public sector will be the primary drivers for growth of data services.
Telecom operators are considering Government’s smart city initiatives and home
automation as new revenue streams, along with inclusive programs around e-governance,
m-health, and remote education among others.
“I expect that in the next two to three years, telecom operators in India will continue to invest in improving
the capabilities and capacities of the networks in order to cater to exponential increase in data.”
Nitin Bansal, Managing Director & Head of Network Solutions, Ericsson - South East Asia, Oceania and India.
5G is the harbinger of a new era of customer experience over mobile networks. In theory, 5G can achieve
the IoT reality.Telecom operators are preparing their networks to address the demands of 5G capabilities.
However, 5G is likely to gain prevalence from 2022 onwards.
Exhibit 06: Implications of 5G, India, 2017
Source: Frost & Sullivan
Fibre Focus - From Wireless to Wired
It is well established that the growth of broadband services in India is predominantly driven by wireless
connections. Fixed broadband continues to grow but at a lower rate. That said, the industry and the
Government realize digital ubiquity cannot be completely achieved unless the country achieves a mass base
of fixed line services.
3G/4G Towards 5G 5G
Enhanced
Broadband
Browsing, social
media, music,
video
Fixed Wireless Access (obtaining a at
home fiber like experience with a dongle),
interactive live concerts and sport events
4K/8K videos, mobile
AR/VR gaming,
immersive media
Internet of Things
(IoT)
Connected
Devices
Remote monitoring and control
Remote operation, and
maintenance

12. Outlook for Indian Telecom and Broadcast Industry
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© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
As the network technology progresses to 4.5G and 5G, the airwave will be more dependent on fibre
networks. After the merger with Reliance Communication, Reliance Jio Limited will have a clear edge over
rest of the incumbents. It will have 4.28 lakh kilometers of fibre network which is greater than the 2.5 lakh
kilometers of Bharti Airtel. It is expected that Reliance Jio will utilize this opportunity to disrupt the fixed
communications market.
5G: Preparation
“5G is currently advancing rapidly. With a brand-new network architecture, a peak rate at least ten times
higher than that of 4G, the transmission delay in milliseconds, and over one hundred billion connections, 5G
will open a new era of Internet of Everything (IoE), critical communication, enhanced broadband services
and in-depth man-machine interaction.The Minister for Telecommunications announced that India would roll
out 5G by 2020, a time frame that has been accepted by international standardization bodies, vendors and
service providers in many parts of the world.”
Nitin Jain, CISO (Chief Information & Security Officer) - ZTE Telecom India Ltd.
Building the Rural Backbone and Driving Growth
Digital India as a program was started by the present Government to drive inclusive growth and to provide
affordable solutions to consumers in mHealth, mEducation and mBanking. Rural market as shown in the
exhibit below, presents enormous opportunity to the service providers as well as technology vendors.
Exhibit 07: Connectivity in Rural Vs. Urban, India, 2017
Source:TRAI
Wireless Subscribers— Rural Versus Urban, India, FY2017 Wireline Subscribers— Rural Versus Urban, India, FY2017
672.42
497.76
rofWireless
bscribers
Million)
20.56
ofWireline
cribers
llion)
M bil Ph h P i D i f I U
Urban Rural
Number
Sub
(M
3.85
Urban Rural
Numbero
Subsc
(Mil
Internet User Base— Rural Versus Urban, India, 2017
Mobile Phone as the Primary Device for Internet Use—
Urban Versus Rural, India, 2017
YOY growth
Penetration
22%
31%
7%
60%
263
157
UserBase
(Million)
Urban
Rural
Urban Rural

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The budget for the year 2018-19 has focussed on developing the connectivity layer in rural India to enable
inclusive growth and promote research and development for 5G and digital technologies.
Exhibit 8: Budget Allocations for Telecom Industry, India, 2018
Source: Economic Times and Frost & Sullivan
The other major driver for connecting rural India is the BharatNet Program launched by the Government
of India. Under phase I of the program, one lakh gram panchayats have been provided hi-speed broadband
connectivity with high-speed optic fiber networks.This envisages delivery of high-speed broadband services
in over 2.5 lakh villages benefitting more than 200 million rural Indians.The phase 2 of this project, which is
expected to be completed by end of 2018, will connect 1.5 lakhs more gram panchayats.The Government is
planning to lease the optic fiber lines to telecom operators who have already made advance payments.
The Government of India is also looking to install Wi-Fi hotspots in more than 1,000 gram panchayats across
the country, under its ambitious project called DigitalVillage.This is to provide internet connectivity for mass
use and to enable delivery of services like health and education in far-flung areas.
“2018 will be a hallmark year for the digital era, where India will deploy projects that will become global
best practices. We will be one of the key contributors to the global knowledge pool. We will also see
acceleration of fibre and IP backhaul deployment in India driven by both private and public service providers.”
Sanjay Kaul, Managing Director, Service Provider Business, Cisco India & SAARC
All ti f INR10 000 in 2018 19 f
Department of Telecom will support establishment of
indigenous 5G centers with IIT Chennai.
5G
Allocation of INR10,000 crore in 2018-19 for
creation and augmentation of Bharat Net. The
government has also proposed to set up 5 lakh Wi-
Fi hotspots which will provide broadband access to
five crore rural citizens
INR 3,073 crore has been allocated for the
Department of Science and Technology (DST) to
invest in research training, and skilling in digital
technologies like robotics, AI, digital
Encouraging
New Age
Rural Focus
technologies like robotics, AI, digital
manufacturing, big data intelligence, quantum
communications and art of the things.
g
Technologies

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© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
Video Industry in India (Broadcast, Pay TV and OTT)
Digitization and emergence of OTT are offering immense opportunities for all stakeholders

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From the age of a single TV and single broadcaster in the early 90s, the broadcast industry in India has now
shifted to multi-broadcaster, multi-platform and multi-device ecosystem. The major drivers have been the
rapid evolution of cable and satellite industry, growth of Internet, proliferation of video viewing devices and
improved purchasing power of people.This has in turn resulted in the emergence of new business models,
increased competition, changing regulations, and above all a significant shift in consumer preferences.
Digitization of Pay TV Services
Digitization of TV services in India was planned in a phased manner covering metropolitan cities followed by
Tier 2,Tier 3 and then the rest of India. Unfortunately the implementation date was revised several times
over the last seven years owing to poor infrastructure as well an inadequate number of Set Top Boxes (STBs).
With the final deadline of complete digitization behind us by almost a year, on one hand, there are attempts
by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) to push any remaining households towards STB
adoption by issuing warnings. On the other hand, pay TV operators are gradually upgrading the consumer
premise equipment with modern STBs that support advanced formats as well as HD.
“We observed three major trends in 2017. HD subscriptions are increasing since the prices of HD TVs are
going down and even the lower middle class is able to afford HD TV and services.The DAS phase 4 digitization
in Tier 2 and 3 cities has helped us acquire customers with low ARPU. The revenue from HD services
activation has been neutralized by the lower ARPU from DAS 4 customers.The third major trend was the
launch of national and international OTT platforms.Though it has not disturbed our subscribers, it has created
a space in the minds of our subscribers that there is an alternate way of watching TV. In the current situation,
broadcasters are expected to create good quality content and also invest in technology. Since there are
multiple platforms where content is harnessed, there is immense opportunity to increase subscriber base."
Rajiv Dalmia, CFO, Dish TV India Ltd.
Rural India Woes
• Although a majority of Multiple System Operators (MSO) and Local Cable Operators (LCO) claim 40%
seeding in the final phase, there is a general lack of readiness in rural areas in terms of customer service
as well as infrastructure support for technical difficulties.
• Demonetization in 2016 dampened the speed of seeding boxes as people in the rural areas were not
equipped to make digital payments.
• There has been widespread migration to DTH with cheaper packages (starting at INR 99 per month) as
well as free options such as Doordarshan’s FreeDish in many parts of India.
• As rural consumers complain about the affordability of services as well as the upfront cost towards the
STB, local operators are offering STBs at monthly instalments.

16. Outlook for Indian Telecom and Broadcast Industry
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© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
Impact of Digitization
Digitization has resulted in challenges and opportunities for all major stakeholders.
Exhibit 9: Impact of Digitization, India, 2017
Source: Frost & Sullivan
Market Trends: Changing Video Viewing Landscape
The video viewing landscape is evolving. Though the linear TV will still rule mass viewership trends,
personalised applications and experiences will drive the market in the future.
Stakeholder Opportunities Restraints/Challenges
Cable TV
• Provide high quality service
• Offer more number of channels
• Offer HD channels
• Offer broadband services bundled
with cable TV
• High investments to convert to digital networks
and digital set top boxes
• Lack of clarity in revenue sharing
• Timely installation of STB
Direct to
Home(DTH)
• Increase in consumer base by reach to
rural India
• Acquisition of low ARPU consumers in DAS
Phase 3 and phase 4
Broadcasters
• Demand for regional content
• Demand for HD content
• Increase in number of channels
• Increase in subscription revenue
• Higher accuracy for subscriber information
• National broadcasters need to establish them
selves in regional space
Consumer
• Superior picture quality
• Value added services likeVOD, PPV,
HD/UHD channels, 3D, DVR, triple play
services with broadband
• Cheaper bouquets with flexibility to
choose channels and pay only for a-la-carte
channels
• Electronic program guide with channel
information, program synopsis, daily
schedule and reminder options.
• Uninterrupted viewing during rainy
conditions when DTH services are affected
• Poor communication
• Inability to change the current STBs
• Lack of awareness regarding online payments in
rural India
• Inability to pay high prices for digital TV service
sand packages

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Exhibit 10: Evolution of Video Viewing Landscape, 2000-2025
Source: Frost & Sullivan
Digitization and emergence of OTT services have resulted in the advent of new opportunities to improve
penetration and expand monetization capabilities.All stakeholders want to provide quality content on multiple
platforms, understand the user behaviour and monetize the content and experience.The stakeholders in the
broadcast industry are leveraging new age technologies to enable this transformation.
OTT Video Adoption
“In India there is a rapidly increasing number of content creation companies building their own OTT
platforms to improve their ad revenues and Bollywood has recognized the opportunity as well. With the
rising demand, Limelight significantly expanded its local capacity in India as well as offers global private
network to companies who want to deliver their content to large audience of expats who want to watch
broadcast quality Indian content online.We have seen in our research that people in India use smartphones
more often than any other device to watch online videos and 61.9% of viewers will give up and leave the site
after a video buffers twice. Whether it’s online videos, websites, mobile applications, music, software, or
games, it needs to reach customers quickly, reliably, and securely for consistent and high quality online
experiences that keep them coming back.”
Steve Miller-Jones, Senior Director of Product Management at Limelight Networks
2000 2018 2025
Video Viewing
Experience
One way viewing InteractiveViewing PersonalisedViewing
Viewership
Position
At Home with family
At home with family/isolated/
On the go
At home with
family/isolated/On the go
Platform Television
Television/Internet
Browser/App
Applications on all devices
including TV
Device Television/ Computer
Television/Computer/Smartpho
ne
Smartphone/Targeted TV
Content Any content
Content survival based on
audience rating
Content based on individual
preferences
Consumer Passive Interactive Part of theViewing Experience
Content
Influencers
Content Producers Content Producer/Consumer Consumer

18. Outlook for Indian Telecom and Broadcast Industry
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© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
OTT Video Viewing Pattern
“With the changing landscape in media delivery, we’ve seen
different trends on how content like videos and live events are
consumed, both globally and in India.The big driver for the increase
in video viewing in India is not just the number of people, but also
the fact that there are growing number of people who are viewing
content for a longer duration. At Akamai, we’ve seen the average
viewing time has increased from a few of minutes to tens of
minutes for some of our bigger OTT customers. OTT content is
changing from being a novelty to something being viewed as
mainstream content, and this also validates the hypothesis that
mobile is the first screen for a lot of people in India.”
Rishi Varma, Senior Product Manager, Media Delivery, Akamai
Technologies APJ
Opportunities for OTT Video Provider
“I think we’re going to see some explosive growth in the online video space in 2018.With overall
Internet penetration at only 35%, the opportunities for growth are immense. Data costs have
fallen to a level where the common man can afford to stream content. Internet speeds are
improving. We greatly applaud TRAI’s recommendations on net neutrality in December as we
firmly believe nothing and no one should stand between a content-creator telling his story to the
intended audience.We’re also keenly awaiting the launch of BARC’s Ekam ratings as a common
digital currency. With all elements of the ecosystem falling into place, any possible barriers
preventing users from seamlessly accessing the content of their choice online are slowly
disappearing. Clear themes for this year are innovations in content, especially Originals, a deep
focus on consumer analytics, experimentation with revenue models and increased user demand
for regional language content as more and more people get online from smaller markets.”
Archana Anand, EVP & Head of Digital- ZEE5 India Business at Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd.
Monetization
“The interesting aspect in terms of
monetization is the number of people
who are going to adopt Internet and
consume Internet services, especially in
the entertainment and media space,
which is going to explode. In the last
year, the advent of data costs coming
down and data speeds going up is just
the beginning of the story; it is the tip of
the iceberg. Our view is that we will
have half a billion online video viewers
in the next 3 years in India.This will be
massive. That’s the kind of numbers we
are talking about; in terms of adoption,
it is absolutely thumbs up. It’s just a
matter of time rather than anything
else.”
Prabh Singh, Head of Content &
Revenue, Hotstar (As expressed at the
Panel Discussion: "Online Content –
Addressing Concerns" in India Digital
Summit)

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On Impact of Audience Measurement
“We saw an unprecedented growth in video streaming in 2017 and all signs are that 2018 too will be a big,
growth year.The large ad-supported streaming services likeVOOT are already seeing great traction on video
advertising and the upcoming industry-wide common digital measurement service from BARC will provide
further impetus to this growth.”
Gaurav Gandhi, Chief Operating Officer,Viacom18 Digital Ventures
For most leading broadcast networks in India, over-the-top distribution is the primary focus for growth for
the next three years.They are firming up their strategies around content production (linear TV content and
original content), geographic expansion (regional and international), platform expansion, and partnerships
across the ecosystem to leverage the strengths of one another.
Exhibit 11: Strategies of Market Participants, India, 2017
Source: Frost & Sullivan
Technology Adoption Trends
Advanced technologies are used in enhancing user experience, automating production workflows, monetizing
content, and ensuring privacy and security of content in the multi-device, multi-platform and multi-delivery
environment.
Harnessing the content on
O i i C
Harnessing the content on
LinearTV for other
platforms
Regional Content Focus
Original Content
Production
Sports Content: Obtaining
rights and providing
exhilarating viewer
International Operations Glocal Content
exhilarating viewer
experience
Telecom bundling OEMs an Other Bundling

20. Outlook for Indian Telecom and Broadcast Industry
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© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
Exhibit 12:Advanced Technologies in Broadcast, India, 2017
Source: Frost & Sullivan
Pay TV Proliferation
“The Indian Pay TV market will continue to grow in the coming years with TV penetration increasing
throughout India, which will fuel mass market demand for products like SD STBs. With India’s growing
economy and increasing incomes, we are also seeing a greater uptake in OTT services, and people are shifting
preferences from SD to HD services, as well as connected STBs.This intensifies competition among content
owners and operators who need to navigate the converging ecosystem to continue to compete with internet-
based competitors. One way is to embrace Android TV which has emerged in the past couple of years as a
promising platform for operators to leap ahead. At the same time, the fight against piracy continues and
content owners and operators must look to watermarking technology which is becoming increasingly crucial
to detect illegal content.”
Sanjiv Kainth, Regional Director, South Asia, Irdeto
Future of TV
“Across the globe, we are seeing the emergence of targeted TV. It is not just about recommendations and
discovery; it’s about targeted content, user interface, layout, pricing, packaging and advertising for different
users, time and context.”
Gideon Gilboa, Senior Vice President, Product and Marketing, Kaltura
TelevisionTelevision
Content
Production
Content
Production
Targeted
Advertising
Targeted
Advertising
Increase in proliferation of Ultra-High
Definition (UHD) TV and smart TV.
On- premise cloud for storage and retrieval
Application based content production tools
ProductionProduction
Enabled by audience measurement
For OTT content server level targeted
AdvertisingAdvertising
( ) Application-based content production tools
for quick technology upgrades and for
streamlining production to market needs.
For OTT content, server level targeted
advertising is the next step
Data AnalyticsData Analytics
Content
Protection
Content
Protection
Immersive
Video
Immersive
Video
Set top box
(STB)
Set top box
(STB)
Data used study viewership
patterns, regional traffic, language
preferences with greater granularity and
scale thus enable efficient media planning
Watermarking media assets not only
protects them from illegal distribution but
also enables seamless tracing of
perpetrators.
Revolutionizing conventional consumption
patterns for digital advertisers, content
owners, publishers, across the globe, albeit
at a slower rate of adoption in India. Sports
and News content is already available on
VR
Proliferation of High Definition (HD) STBs
adoption due to the efforts of DTH
operators.
Adoption of hybrid set top box(STB) will
gain traction with better pricing and
marketing in future VR.marketing in future.
Card-less STBs

21. 21
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Cloud Adoption
“We are seeing a new trend where TV networks are purely being created for digital consumption instead of traditional
broadcast. Also, the demand for content has increased significantly with the launch of new OTT platforms, and TV
networks are seeing a whole new set of distribution outlets ie. virtual MVPDs. Another interesting trend is CXOs
leveraging technologies like cloud for its scalability and flexibility to effect personalization and targeting.” Srinivasan
KA, Co-founder,Amagi
"India is uniquely characterized by a phenomenal amount
of quality content. In the digital era, content distribution
has undergone significant transformation. With SVOD
becoming more popular, legacy archive systems are not
always fit-for-purpose and broadcasters are beginning to
adopt on-premise cloud stacks for easily scalable content
management and archiving. Though there are
apprehensions in expanding cloud services to other
workflows in India, operators are adopting cloud for many
media operations with the increasing need for effective
and efficient utilization of resources."
Peter Ennis, Senior Vice President, Global Services, Delivery
and Customer Support at Avid Technology
“In India, we’ve seen a real inflection point over the last
twelve months in some of the industries that are slower to
adopt.We see many of these enterprises quickly learn and
realize the business benefits and flexibility that the cloud
brings, and then move fast to build a 12-to-24-month
migration plan. In the media and entertainment space,
NDTV, Viacom, Hotstar, ABP News, and Sony Pictures
Networks have started utilizing the benefits of cloud. Every
imaginable business segment is using AWS in a very
meaningful way. The cloud is such a strong value proposition
for customers that there really isn’t a customer segment
that won’t derive benefit from moving to the cloud.”
Bikram Bedi, Head of India for Amazon Internet Services Pvt.
Ltd.

22. Outlook for Indian Telecom and Broadcast Industry
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© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
Exhibit 13: Broadcast Technology Adoption, India, 2015-2025
Source: Frost & Sullivan
Outlook
Hybrid TV Viewing
India is characterized by population with diverse financial, political, social and cultural needs. Thus, for the
next ten to fifteen years, TV will coexist with OTT video or any other video viewing platforms. With the
advent of hybrid STBs and connected viewers,TV will transcend physical boundaries and become ubiquitous
across devices and screens.
Rural Focus
With rural data now available from Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), advertisers are tapping
into this market and are catering to their needs and preferences. This has opened opportunities for
advertisers as well as broadcasters to segment their audiences into geo clusters and analyze their needs.
Regional Content
Regional content remains highly under-served, with limited channels and production of shows. However, this
rising trend is gaining precedence among producers and broadcasters, with renewed investment on
unconventional, youth-centric content in vernaculars. Broadcasters need to shift their focus to cater to this
audience by producing or curating more local content. It will give them better reach and addressability with
a diverse portfolio and content library.
OTT Video:An Undeniable Service Expansion
MSOs and DTH operators must examine the OTT business model to replicate and offer bundled services
to their existing customers. Hathway, Sun TV, Dish TV are some of the existing OTT platforms in the market,
but other market participants must follow suit to keep up with evolving consumption patterns and cater to
the changing needs of their consumers.
MSOs: Service Expansion on Cards
MSO operators have a unique opportunity to capitalize on the displaced analogue subscribers, by offering
affordable digital subscriptions with easy payment options, seamless transition for first-time digital users, and
value-add services to lure consumers to remain loyal to their services.
20252020201820162015
• TargetedTV
• Cloud based
production
• Hybrid STB
• Cloud based editing
and other post
d i i i i
• Dynamic Ad
Insertion
• Watermarking
C P i
• UHDTV
• SmartTV
• Targeted Advertising
• HDTV
• IP Based workflows
• Cloud for Storage
• ImmersiveVideo
• Artificial Intelligence
and Machine
production activities
• Advanced Data
Analytics
Content ProtectionTargeted Advertising
• App based content
production
Cloud for Storage
• Data Analytics
Learning

23. 23
www.frost.com
Providing broadband services becomes an important part of value added services for MSOs, and therefore
they pursue it themselves or will partner with internet service providers over the forecast period.
OTT Providers: Catch up with the Trend
Consolidation in OTT market is expected in the next three years to pave way for higher content repository
and distribution capabilities.Though advertising video on demand (AVOD) is here to stay, subscription video
on demand (SVOD) will gain traction to provide high quality content and improve ARPU.
Broadcasters: Partnerships and Collaborations are the Key
Content is still the king but experience is the differentiator. There will be several new partnerships and
collaborations in 2018 and 2019 trying to match the consumers’ digital experience requirements.
Content Protection
“Access to TV content in India is unquestionably on the rise.With an increasing access to high-value content, it
is absolutely fundamental to ensure it is secure from illicit access. Measures like forensic watermarking protect
studios from sharp revenue losses and, equally as important, protect the livelihoods of those working in the
creative industry. Collaboration between content owners and local governments is also critical.Working together
to deploy the best protection tools that minimize content theft and educating the public on the grave effects of
piracy will help elevate India’s profile as a leader in the war against tech-savvy pirates.”
Chrys Poulain, Sales Director, NexGuard
“With today’s advanced cardless security options, Indian cable operators are able to escape traditional CA
system and one-way network restrictions without compromising security.A cardless system can provide flexible
levels of security essential to multi-screen service models that would be virtually impossible to achieve with
legacy systems.”
Steve Oetegenn, President,Verimatrix

24. Outlook for Indian Telecom and Broadcast Industry
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© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
CONCLUSION
The Indian Government is keen on scaling up connectivity and therefore there will be renewed focus from
the government and the regulator to drive this agenda. Citizen empowerment related initiatives are being
conceived and implemented to empower the last Indian and enable inclusive growth.
As a result of consolidation, the telecom industry will have reduced competition and better fiscal stability.
This will help them invest on network transformation to suit the new age data intensive traffic. Also, the
consolidated entities are expected to benefit from the operational and financial synergies.To improve their
bottom lines, telecom operators will have to develop innovative business models with services that would
cover voice, data and video apart from cross-industry collaborations.
Video viewing habits have been redefined by the OTT video ecosystem and all stakeholders are trying to
create footprints across the value chain to be pertinent. Investments in advanced technologies that will enable
automation, high quality content production and enhance user experience will be crucial. But the investments
must be in line with the social, economic, cultural, infrastructure and market trends, to attain a reasonable
and sustainable return on investment (RoI).
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Frost & Sullivan is thankful to all the participants in this research and to the senior executives who provided
their insights for this paper, including those from:
ACCESS Akamai Amagi
Amazon Internet Services Avid Cisco
Dish TV Ericsson Hotstar
Huawei Irdeto Kaltura
Limelight Network Netflix NexGuard
Nokia Sony Entertainment Verimatrix
VOOT/Viacom 18 Zee Entertainment ZTE
This report is part of Frost & Sullivan’s Knowledge Partnership for Convergence India 2018.
This Frost & Sullivan whitepaper has been authored by:-
Jayashree Rajagopal
Aafia Bathool
Vidya S. Nath

25. 25
www.frost.com
DISCLAIMER
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26. Outlook for Indian Telecom and
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© 2018 Frost & Sullivan
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