Amagi, a global leader in cloud-based SaaS technology for broadcast and connected TV, today announced its plans to deepen engagement with the content ecosystem in India. The company intends to utilize the power of cloud to unify broadcast operations as well as participate in the growing Connected TV-led Free Ad-supported Streaming TV (FAST) market in the country. Amagi will enable content owners and platforms to offer cable TV-like 24/7 linear channels to audiences in an ad-supported model.
Amagi’s SaaS-based FAST solution built on Amazon Web Services (AWS) includes 24/7 broadcast-grade live linear channel creation, simple-to-use program scheduling tools, advanced graphics, dynamic ad insertion, contextual advertising, comprehensive ad analytics, and more – as well as an industry-leading global distribution network of 50+ FAST platforms. The breadth of solutions offered by Amagi is unmatched in the industry, with leading media brands such as Cox Media Group, Banijay Rights, AccuWeather, and more choosing Amagi as their go-to technology partner for FAST.
Having started its operations in India with geo-targeted advertising in 2008, Amagi is now bringing its globally proven suite of cloud-architected solutions for broadcast and streaming to Indian customers. Today, the company supports more than 700 content brands and manages over 2,000 channel deliveries for the global media and entertainment industry. Amagi provided a UHD cloud playout solution for broadcasting the Tokyo Olympics last year in the US region, which was a first-of-its-kind remote live production event. The company is now backed by leading SaaS investors like Accel, Norwest Venture Partners, Avataar Ventures, and Premji Invest. Amagi turned a unicorn recently with a $95 million investment round led by Accel.
In India, Amagi has already established successful partnerships with prominent content providers such as Shemaroo, B4U, Discovery Networks, and more, for FAST and other cloud-enabled broadcast operations. The company offers best-in-class cloud solutions in collaboration with companies like AWS, enabling broadcasters to move all their workflows – content ingest and preparation, scheduling, graphics, playout, monitoring – to the cloud, be it for traditional cable distribution or for OTT. Amagi CLOUDPORTXpress, a cloud-based channel playout platform enabling broadcast TV and streaming TV networks to launch and manage broadcast-grade linear channels on a ‘pay-as-you-go’ model, is available on AWS Marketplace. This sales channel for AWS Independent Software Vendor (ISV) Partners like Amagi makes it easy for customers to find, buy, deploy and manage software solutions, including SaaS, in a matter of minutes. Amagi has also expanded its sales and customer service teams in India to better support customer growth and business expansion in the region.
“As a digitally savvy country, it is no surprise that India’s smart TV penetration and online video content consumption have grown in leaps and bounds in recent times,” said Baskar Subramanian, CEO & Co-founder, Amagi. “We are also seeing strong demand among Indian consumers for local and cross-border streaming content. As a technology leader in the FAST space, we intend to act as a conduit between content owners and platforms, bringing vast and diverse content libraries to the most popular streaming platforms in the country, and enabling them to delight their consumers with quality programming.”
“We have India in our DNA and are intrinsically able to understand the needs of the consumers here. From simplifying content discovery on streaming platforms to personalizing content delivery, our cloud-native solutions serve the full spectrum of the content value chain letting our customers unify investments and workflows to optimize the current broadcast-based business models with the emerging FAST-based business models. We’re eager to use our solutions to usher in a technology revolution in the Indian OTT and CTV-led FAST landscape,” said Jay Ganesan, Senior Vice President of Sales in APAC.
“Amagi has extensive experience in linear channel playout and their systematic approach to troubleshooting our queries allows us to eliminate issues very quickly and find effective clean feed solutions for the South Asia market. The affiliate onboarding process and the handling of the entire project elements and requirements really help to get things across the line quickly and efficiently,” said Prashant Dhar, Director- Technical Ops, South Asia, Warner Bros. Discovery.
“As a long-standing member of the AWS Partner Network, Amagi is playing a key role in helping our media customers take advantage of the global reach, scalability, expertise, and robustness of AWS to identify new opportunities and drive greater profitability. Given their deep technical expertise and understanding of the media landscape in India, Amagi is well-positioned to offer cutting-edge solutions to launch, distribute and monetize live linear channels on FAST platforms for our customers here,” said Shweta Jain, APAC Head of Business Development, Media and Entertainment, Amazon Web Services Singapore Private Ltd.
Globally, Amagi clients include ABS-CBN, A+E Networks UK, beIN Sports, Cinedigm, Curiosity Stream, Discovery Networks, Fox Networks, Fremantle, Gusto TV, NBCUniversal, Tastemade, Tegna, USA Today, Vice Media, and Warner Media, among others.
