2022 has so far been a houseful show for the media and entertainment industry in India. From adults who sought to escape from their now-increased hectic workload after a work-from-home life to kids who were trying to get used to playing indoors, the pandemic introduced new possibilities for media and entertainment startups.

This ushered in an assortment of opportunities for new-age startups and investors to tap into, catapulted by the rising demand for services like short-video apps, music and gaming platforms across demographics.

Besides video apps and gaming platforms, over-the-top (OTT) also emerged as one of the hottest sectors in the space, with close to 95+ OTT platforms such as Disney+ Hotstar, ZEE5, Netflix, Amazon, and Prime Video, along with local players such as BIGFlix, Alt Balaji, Voot, Spuul, Eros Now, SonyLIV, Sun NXT, Hoichoi, Ullu, MXPlayer among others, mushrooming in the space. According to industry estimates, India's media and entertainment industry is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 3.24%, touching $25.56 Bn by 2022.

The industry is said to be fueled by digital adoption among users across geographies. The Indian industry of advertisement is predicted to be the second-fastest-growing advertising market in the whole of Asia after China. At the present time, advertising earning accounts for around 0.38% of India's GDP. With high-speed data connectivity finally becoming a reality in India, analysts are anticipating a transformation of sorts for India's digital media and entertainment startup sector.

A spate of consolidations among video-streaming platforms; more investments by international music apps here; and a pick-up in subscription-based and mobile advertising revenues; all such avenues are looking brightly for startups to conquer. In this edition, we accentuate some of the most promising startups that will significantly transform media & entertainment as we know it.

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