"We don't believe India is ready for a subscription-driven model yet": iStream CEO

IndiaCast, a distribution JV between TV18 and Viacom18, announced a multi-year licensing deal with online TV service iStream last week.

Following the agreement, iStream.com will stream content from 20 channels distributed by IndiaCast. The portal will have dedicated landing pages for each channels, with streaming available online across devices.

On advertisers' reaction to the agreement, Radhakrishnan Ramachandran, founder and chief executive officer, iStream.com, said, "We do  believe and hope that they will see this as an opportunity to  extend their presence in the online video space. Online videos are  perceived to be more premium worldwide and we are sure to bring value to them as the country's premium online video destination."

Ramachandran refuted the possibility of ads carried on the channels being carried online on the portal.

He underlined that streaming would not work on a paid-views model, and said, "We don't believe India is ready for a subscription-driven model yet."

On the agreement, Anuj Gandhi, group chief executive officer, IndiaCast, said, "With the digital space becoming more mainstream and evolving with the speed of every second, it is imperative for us to take our content from television to online and give access to our viewers across all platforms. With a rich library of content already available with IndiaCast, fiction shows to news, this partnership with iStream will help us further our connect with the audience living online."