By Ankur Tripathi, BU Head - Media & Entertainment, TO THE NEW

Over the last few years, the way people consume entertainment has changed significantly. The rise of OTT (over-the-top) platforms has completely redefined the viewing experience for the audience. People now have access to vast amounts of entertainment with just a simple swipe on their phones. The streaming Tsunami has taken over people with too much content and too little time. According to media reports, India alone had over 547 million OTT users in 2024, a 14% increase from the previous year.

An overflow of content alone does not always equate to meaningful entertainment. What sustains audience engagement today is not merely the abundance of content, but the intelligence behind how it delivers what viewers truly enjoy. This is precisely where Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) and more recently, Generative AI (GenAI) are redefining the landscape, enabling sharper insights, personalized recommendations, and entirely new forms of creative expression.

Why discovery matters more than content volume

The biggest challenge for OTT providers these days is not just producing content but also ensuring that audiences can easily discover it. OTT platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, JioHotstar, and others regularly handle millions of hours of content and users every single day. With so much choice, users often fall into the trap of endless scrolling.

This is where AI comes into the picture through its powered recommendation engines, by analysing user behaviour based on what they skip, where they pause, and what others with similar tastes enjoy.

Netflix recently revealed that recommendations drive around 80% of watched content on the platform. Similarly, JioHotstar leverages AI to push live sports highlights to cricket fans within minutes. In other words, with the advancement of AI, OTT services are now evolving from “What to Watch” to “This Is for You,” curating content based on viewing patterns of the audience.

From recommendations to personalised trailers

While traditional AI examines the past behaviour of the audience, Generative AI enables platforms to take personalisation a few steps further. Recent reports reveal that streaming services like Netflix are developing AI to personalise trailers and thumbnails according to individual viewer preferences. This subtle personalisation can dramatically increase viewership.

In addition, OTT providers are experimenting with GenAI for dubbing and subtitling, allowing shows to travel across regions and breaking language barriers at scale. A 2023 Deloitte report notes that in India, 50% of OTT audiences favor non-Hindi content, which fuels the regional content boom. Creators are now tapping markets swiftly, expanding their audience footprint.

Beyond the Screen: Predicting churn, optimizing marketing, and driving monetization

Artificial Intelligence’s role doesn’t stop at recommendations; it now extends far beyond viewer-facing features. OTT platforms are leveraging predictive analytics combined with GenAI to help streaming platforms guess what content people will want to watch, plan when to release it, and understand which types of shows and movies will be popular in the future. While audiences interact with the front-end magic, much of this transformation is being enabled by technology partners behind the scenes.

Read the full coverage here.