Is Disney triggering concerns among OTT platforms in India?

The OTT platforms are concerned about the entry of Disney into the video-on-demand streaming service with Disney+. It has triggered concerns among global players but in India as well. Presently, there are more than 32 OTT platforms in India. The recent launch of Disney+ will likely up the game for others in terms of content and quality.

Varun Duggirala, Content Chief & Co-Founder, The Glitch, said, “We have fast come to the point of excessive options in the OTT space both globally and locally. But Disney+ is unique because of that their vast inventory of content as well as the newer content they are creating. It will be a must-subscribe for all premium consumers, both from a family viewing perspective as well as fan-dom viewing (Marvel, Star Wars, etc) perspective.”

Disney will reportedly launch its streaming services in India via Hotstar, which is now owned by The Walt Disney Company. The platform is looking at introducing its service in India in May next year. Experts think that Disney+ will be giving Hotstar an advantage to attract Disney's fan following to the platform as it has so much content being available on one platform.

Shrenik Gandhi, Co-Founder and CEO, White Rivers Media, stated, “If the industry is closely guarded and a new player comes in, it obviously creates tremors in the industry. The content and quality game will become stronger. Hotstar is the one who will gain in this game since Marvel and Disney fans will flock to Hotstar, that's the advantage they will enjoy. They will get a chunk of consumers who are willing to spend on quality, therefore this will be about quality and not of a price war”. The OTT game has got a lot more interesting.”

Disney+ Users Being Hacked Becomes A Hot Debate  Disney+ customers have this week fallen victim to “credential stuffing,” a technique attackers use to steal passwords to gain access to accounts. Some customers who signed up for Walt Disney Co’s new Disney+ streaming service have seen their usernames and passwords sold online to third parties and have been locked out of their newly opened accounts.

John Shier, Senior Security Advisor, cybersecurity company Sophos, said, “Many Disney+ users are reporting that they have been locked out of their accounts. Disney+ has responded by saying they have no evidence of a breach. Our experience suggests that this is likely the result of a credential stuffing attack, a phishing campaign against Disney+ users or the result of credential-stealing malware on users' devices.”

Credential stuffing is when cybercriminals use leaked credentials from one website – which could already be for sale on the dark web – and try those same credentials on other online services. This breach is a prime example of the importance of having unique passwords across all of your online services. As we’ve seen time and time again, cybercriminals are just as lazy as the rest of us. If they can get away with using a person’s previously compromised passwords across different services, that will be their default.