Netflix the world’s biggest streaming service has announced the StreamFest in India which will begin midnight on Saturday, December 5 and run throughout Sunday, December 6. For those 48 hours, you can watch whatever you love on Netflix for ‘FREE’.
Users will get access to one standard-definition (SD) stream. Think of it like having access to Netflix’s ‘Basic’ plan. Additionally, Netflix will limit the number of free viewers, which means it’s possible that you will run into a message that reads “StreamFest is at capacity”.
The initiative is aimed at bringing new users to the platform to compete against Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar and Zee5 etc. In the rising OTT (over the top) market in India.
Netflix India Vice President (Content) Monika Shergill said “At Netflix, we want to bring the most amazing stories from across the world to all fans of entertainment in India. It’s why we’re hosting StreamFest: an entire weekend (December 5, 12.01 am -December 6, 11.59 pm) of free Netflix.”
“Anyone in India can watch all the blockbuster films, the biggest series, award-winning documentaries, and entertaining reality shows for two whole days,” she added.
The participant will be able to create profiles, add things to “My List”, tweak parental controls, change the language to Hindi and pick any subtitles or dubs they like. During StreamFest, the users will have the option to watch Netflix on Android, iPhone, smart TV, gaming console and use Smart Downloads on mobile and can also access the Top 10 list.
Shergill added that this has been done ‘because we want fans keen to try Netflix to experience it exactly the way our members do’.
In the account of signing up, one doesn’t need to provide payment details. Just a name, email address or phone number, and a password.
Netflix’s free weekend idea was first announced in October by Chief Product Officer Greg Peters, with Android app code revealing that it would be called “StreamFest”, that users wouldn’t need a payment method and StreamFest’s limited capacity warnings.
Netflix has 195.15 million paid subscribers worldwide as of the third quarter of 2020. The company has been aggressively expanding its presence in the Indian market. It has been releasing localised content and bringing international titles as it looks to attract new users in the country.
Netflix had piloted and then launched a mobile phone only plan in India first of its kind for the company globally. Founder and CEO Reed Hastings had said the company has placed great emphasis on creating original Indian content for its audiences in the country and has invested Rs 3,000 crore towards that in 2019-2020.
