India's Flipkart adds original content to video service

[October 15, 2019]  MUMBAI (Reuters) - Walmart Inc's Indian unit Flipkart is adding original shows to its newly minted video platform, the company said on Tuesday, as it competes with rival Amazon.com Inc's Prime Video.

The logo of India's e-commerce firm Flipkart is seen in this illustration picture taken January 29, 2019. REUTERS/Danish Siddiqui/Illustration/File Photo

Flipkart, which says it has 160 million customers in India, rolled out its free video service in August and will tie up with Bollywood A-listers like director Farah Khan to produce original video series, it said in a release.

"Flipkart Video Originals will make available bespoke snackable content that is both mobile-first and interactive in nature," it said.

In India, the retailer competes with Amazon, which offers a streaming video and music service with its Prime membership program.

Cheap data and affordable smartphones have made India a ripe market for companies like Netflix and Amazon, as millions of people turn to their mobiles for entertainment.

In August, Flipkart said its video service would be free and would focus on movies, short videos and web series.

(Reporting by Shilpa Jamkhandikar; Editing by Nick Macfie)

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