Hindustan Times (Lucknow)

HT Labs floats content discovery app

- Lata Jha lata.j@livemint.com HT Labs is an arm of HT Media, which publishes Mint.

NEW DELHI: HT Labs, HT Media’s innovation hub, which is developing digital-first products for audiences based on their preference­s, has launched OTTplay, a content discovery platform offering curated shows and movies on streaming platforms. The recommenda­tions will be based on a user’s preference, such as language, genre, actors and filmmakers, from a selection of 150,000 movies and 30,000 shows across 10 languages and 35-plus over-the-top (OTT) platforms.

After the lockdowns were imposed, most people staying at home have increasing­ly turned to entertainm­ent channels. This has led to a challenge of having too much to choose from and not really knowing what to watch.

Despite the 60-80% increase in paid subscriber­s and consumptio­n on platforms rising nearly five times over the Covid-19 lockdown last year, users of video streaming services, such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Hotstar, are facing problems in discoverin­g content, said media experts.

OTTplay resolves such issues. “The aim is to democratiz­e the watching and discovery experience and by playing in this space, we want to lead the viewer to the right movie or show that he or she would like across OTTs based on his taste and the time he has to view,” Avinash Mudaliar, co-founder, HT Labs, said.

“Most end up watching only what’s promoted on their homepage or patchwall, and this happens to be a fraction of the content available. We want to help users discover shows and films based on what they have watched and liked and would want to watch more of.”

Available on web and app, OTTplay will help users discover titles they are most likely to enjoy. Users can also share their feedback by swiping left on titles they ‘dislike’ and swiping right or clicking on the ‘heart’ icon for what they may have enjoyed watching. The users are also encouraged to share their favourite actors, filmmakers and genres to better understand their preference­s for movies and shows. Once the data is captured, the engine suggests titles across platforms that match their tastes.

OTTplay will also curate news, reviews and listicles, which are produced in-house and by publicatio­ns, including Hindustan Times, LiveMint and Film Companion, besides sorting titles based on moods, themes and the duration of films or shows.

 ?? MINT ?? Despite the 60-80% rise in consumptio­n, users of video streaming services are facing problems in discoverin­g content.
MINT Despite the 60-80% rise in consumptio­n, users of video streaming services are facing problems in discoverin­g content.

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