My show, my terms

Sheetal

Why pay when you can rent? Although it’s not the tagline for BookMyShow’s new venture BookMyShow Stream, it sure is an underlying message for binge-watchers! From Icelandic horror thriller I Remember You to English horror film The Power to mystery drama Midsommar or the family adventure comedy The Witches to romantic comedy Superintelligence, the new streaming platform is all you need to enjoy movies.

Movies releasing today on the streaming platform

The Vigil

Language: English

Genre: Horror, Thriller

Cast: Dave Davis, Menashe Lustig [yi], Malky Goldman, Fred Melamed, Lynn Cohen

Director: Keith Thomas

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The Catcher Was A Spy

Language: English

Genre: Biograpghy, Drama, History

Cast: Paul Rudd, Tom Wilkinson, Giancarlo Giannini, Paul Giamatti, Pierfrancesco Favino, Connie Nielsen, Sienna Miller

Director: Ben Lewin

Know the jargon

With the pandemic still around and theatres closed, TVOD (Transactional Video on Demand) is a viable option since it helps the consumer purchase content on pay-per-view basis. In other words, it is just the opposite of SVOD (Subscription Video on Demand), the way OTT giants like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video or Disney+ Hotstar functions in India.

The late entry

An option which has been readily available in foreign lands since ages, is on trial in Indian market because it has become the only way to sustain the ailing theatres during the time of Covid. So, like the hero’s late entry, one can say BookMyShow Stream has arrived.

Launched on February 5 with 600 movie titles, it has a wide range of options, some of which are not even available to OTT subscribers. Another Round, a Danish-comedy drama, also an Oscar Award winner for Best International Feature, is only available here, and there’s a buying option too. You can rent it (one-time-watch) or buy it (to share it with family and friends).

So, home show it is!

Rakshita Garg, a homemaker, has purchased the Oscar-nominated animated movies package for her children. She says, “I constantly look through BookMyShow app for some online events to keep myself entertained and then came across selected Oscar-nominated movies for my children.” Another BookMyShow Stream user says, “These days the laptop is my only companion. I had many subscriptions during the previous lockdown to keep that entertainment box ticked off, but it really hits you sometimes that you are paying much more than you consume. And that’s when I switched to this pay-per-view option.”

What sails your boat?

Although TVOD model is being pushed in India by many players, ZEE-owned ZEEPlex, Shemaroo Entertainment’s ShemarooMe Box Office, FanCode, and Epic On, BookMyShow Stream stands a bigger chance to make pay-per-view mainstream, because it enjoys loyal users being the venture of most popular movie and event ticket booking site and application, BookMyShow, in India. May be this is why, they (the organisation) didn’t go overboard with their campaigns. Komal Nahata, trade analyst and movie critic, says, “I think it is a good move. I would not think of trade for now. The nation is mourning, and we are not in the frame of mind to think about profit.”

Play by the rules

Every Friday, new movies are added to the list of movies available on BookMyShow Stream. It is available for viewing on BookMyShow’s mobile app and website as well as Apple TV, Android TV, Firestick, Chromecast and desktop browsers. It gives users an option to rent a movie for a finite duration (a month in most cases) or buy it for unlimited access with prices for movies suitable for all pockets, starting from Rs 40 to Rs 700. BookMyShow Stream allows users to experience features such as downloads and offline viewing.

Facts and figures

• The content on the platform has been curated with love, with specific film categories such as Premieres, Exclusives, World Cinema, Missed in Theatres, Festival Favourites and Dedicated Bundles. So far, the platform has added 52 new titles to its content repertoire, making it a truly content-rich offering.
• As confirmed by the representative of BookMyShow, in March, the platform crossed over 100,000 streams (including pre-booked streams) for Zack Snyder’s Justice League within just three days of the film’s release.
• Movie-lovers have used BookMyShow Stream as their preferred TVOD movie streaming platform to get access to some of the most popular and critically acclaimed films from around the world since it has been rolled out, with over 1,75,000 streams in less than 3 months.
• The platform has been tested on BookMyShow’s peak load benchmarks and can handle over 1,00,000 concurrent viewers at any given point.
• Viewers can enjoy films from around the world with English subtitles in HD and Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound.