Kerala govt set to launch first state-owned OTT platform - CSpace with 42 films
Films that have won awards or have been exhibited at major film festivals will also be streamed on CSpace.
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C-Space, the first state-owned over-the-top (OTT) platform in India, will be launched by the Kerala government this week. C-Space comes at a time when Malayalam cinema is finding resonance in different parts and corners of India and the world thanks to the existing OTT giants like Netflix and Amazon Prime.
Forty-two films including six documentaries will be available for streaming in the first phase as CSpace, the country’s first government-owned over-the-top (OTT) platform, goes live on Thursday. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will launch CSpace at the Kairali Theatre in Thiruvananthapuram at 9.30am.
Run by the Kerala State Film Development Corporation (KSFDC), CSpace aims to provide meaningful infotainment and streaming opportunities with the films on the OTT platform chosen by a panel of curators.
“CSpace is a response to the growing imbalances and multifarious challenges in the OTT sector in terms of content selection and propagation,” said KSFDC chairman Shaji N Karun.
The platform, built under the banner of the Kerala State Film Development Corporation (KSFDC) using funds from the state government, has been envisaged to provide a fillip to award-winning films, short films and documentaries as well as open possibilities for low-budget independent cinema to reach a wider audience.
An official statement noted, “Set to debut this Thursday, the platform aims to deliver a unique blend of informative and entertaining content tailored for the masses."
The OTT platform will be released on behalf of the Department of Cultural Affairs of Government of Kerala. KSFDC has constituted a curator panel of 60 members including eminent cultural personalities from the state for selecting and approving the content.
The eminent cultural personalities include Benyamin, OV Usha, Santhosh Sivan, Shyamaprasad, Sunny Joseph, and Jeo Baby. Every content that is submitted to the platform will be evaluated by three curators from the panel for its artistic, cultural and infotainment merit.
The platform, which operates on a pay per view basis, allows viewers to watch a feature film for Rs 75 and shorter contents for a much lesser price. Exactly half of the amount charged goes to the content provider. Viewers can download the CSpace app from the PlayStore and App Store from March 7 onwards, a KSFDC statement said.
K V Abdul Malik, MD, KSFDC, said the launch of the platform will address a major concern of the exhibitors and distributors of the film industry regarding their dwindling profits due to producers releasing their feature films directly on OTT Platforms, PTI reported. "To accommodate their concerns, CSpace has decided to showcase only those feature films that have been released in cinema halls. Besides, short films, documentaries and experimental films recommended by curators will also be made available on the platform," he added.
