MX Player-miniTV merger: E-commerce giant Amazon India on Monday said it has acquired free streaming OTT platform MX Player and has merged it with its content streaming service miniTV to launch 'Amazon MX Player'. Amazon has not revealed the valuation of the acquisition, but the primary aim of this merger is to expand access to premium-level free entertainment, making it available to a broader audience.
"Amazon recently acquired certain assets of MX Player, including the MX Player app, a leading free streaming OTT service in India. With this acquisition, Amazon is merging two of India's most popular free AVOD (or ad-supported video on demand) services -- MX Player and Amazon miniTV into one service -- Amazon MX Player," the statement said.
Over 250 million users used miniTV, MX player in Septemeber
In September, over 250 million unique users enjoyed access to thousands of original shows, popular movies and international shows dubbed in local languages on the combined service, making it one of the largest free streaming services offering premium content in India, it added.
The service offers premium content across genres, from gripping thrillers, action and dramas, to coming-of-age stories, romance and more, all in a single destination. The service is available through its app on mobile, Amazon.in Shopping app, Prime Video, Fire TV, and Connected TVs. The integration of Amazon miniTV and MX Player into Amazon MX Player will be done automatically on the apps without the need for users to reinstall or upgrade the app.
"Today we are bringing together the vast reach of MX Player, with the advertising tech that leverages Amazon’s billions of customer signals. "It’s about enabling all brands, not just the ones selling on Amazon, to reach and deliver relevant advertising to a very large and engaged base across India. It’s about directly measuring outcomes from the very top of the funnel to the very bottom," said Girish Prabhu, head of Amazon Advertising India.
Amazon to continue to invest in originals
Amazon said it will continue to invest in originals and returning seasons of popular shows, which will help "provide advertisers the opportunity to deepen their relationships with viewers".
"Amazon and MX Player obsess over customer experience and are both believers in the future of free entertainment. Being part of Amazon will let us continue to delight millions of viewers across the country. We will offer high-quality entertainment and streaming experiences faster than we could have done independently while continuing to keep the service free. This merger will mean great things for our viewers, advertisers and content partners, and will let us bring MX Player to even more people in India," Karan Bedi, Head of Amazon MX Player, said.
Amazon also owns Prime Video -- a subscription video-on-demand over-the-top streaming and rental service.
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