India has ordered the blocking of 25 streaming companies — many with hundreds of thousands of viewers and even paying subscribers — for allegedly selling “obscene” content material, in one of many South Asian nation’s largest digital crackdowns but. The order impacts lesser-known, however wildly standard companies like Ullu and ALTT that cater to the nation’s mass-market urge for food for grownup and edgy leisure.
This week, the Ministry of Info and Broadcasting issued directives to dam entry to web sites and apps linked to 25 streaming companies, citing provisions of the Info Know-how Act of 2000 and the IT Guidelines of 2021, TechCrunch discovered.
The order got here months after the Nationwide Fee for Safety of Little one Rights and a Parliamentary Standing Committee on Info Know-how raised considerations about mature content material being streamed on these platforms with out sufficient safeguards.
The Indian authorities contacted web service suppliers and app shops, together with Google Play and the Apple App Retailer earlier this week to limit these streaming companies, a supply aware of the matter informed TechCrunch.
A few of these companies, particularly the foremost ones with hundreds of thousands of subscribers, remained dwell on the time of submitting this text.
Google and Apple didn’t reply to requests for remark. The knowledge and broadcasting minister additionally didn’t reply to an e-mail despatched Friday.
Of the 25 streaming companies, 10 provided in-app purchases via their apps on Google Play and the App Retailer, producing a cumulative $5.7 million since launch with practically 105 million downloads, per the Appfigures information solely shared with TechCrunch. The extensive hole between in-app purchases and downloads is primarily resulting from their low subscription prices — considerably decrease than Netflix and different world platforms in India.
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Lifetime totals of banned streaming companies from Google Play and Apple App StoreImage Credit:Appfigures
Notably, a few of these streaming companies have been both by no means listed on conventional app shops or had been eliminated earlier, and as an alternative provided their apps as direct APK downloads. As of publication, a few of these APK information have been nonetheless accessible via their web sites or third-party platforms.
Earlier this month, Indian manufacturing firm Balaji Telefilms, the mother or father of ALTT, disclosed that its streaming app generated ₹202.6 million ($2.3 million) in income by including 1.06 million subscribers in 2025. ALTT’s content material was watched for greater than 5.8 million hours, garnering 160 million annual views, the corporate mentioned.
ALTT’s app was not accessible for obtain via Google Play and the App Retailer in India, and its web site was inaccessible on most Indian ISPs on the time of submitting this text.
Balaji Telefilms didn’t reply to a request for touch upon the ban.
Ullu, one other comparatively distinguished streaming service named by the Indian authorities, remained accessible by way of its app on the Indian Play Retailer, and its web site was accessible as nicely. The service’s iOS app, nevertheless, was not accessible for obtain from the Indian App Retailer.
Ullu Digital, the mother or father firm of Ullu, reported a web revenue of ₹212.3 million ($2.5 million) for the monetary 12 months 2024, per its regulatory submitting reviewed by TechCrunch. The corporate posted a income of ₹931.4 million ($11 million) and declared a web price of ₹2.08 billion ($24 million).
Ullu Digital didn’t reply to requests for remark.
Alongside hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in subscription income, these streaming companies have been additionally attracting hundreds of thousands of world visits to their web sites.
Picture Credit:SimilarWeb
Ullu noticed practically 10% year-over-year progress in worldwide visitors, reaching 1.9 million visits in June, whereas ALTT recorded over 130% progress to 776,400, per SimilarWeb.
In India, Ullu recorded 18.9% year-over-year progress, reaching 1.8 million visits, whereas ALTT noticed a 157.8% enhance to 696,200 visits, SimilarWeb information exhibits.
Picture Credit:SimilarWeb
Importantly, this isn’t the primary time the streaming enterprise has seen a crackdown in India. World platforms, together with Amazon Prime Video and Netflix typically face situations of censorship by the Indian authorities.
Nevertheless, even stricter actions are seen in circumstances of obscenity regardless of a scarcity of readability on laws, as watching express content material that includes totally consensual interactions between grownup actors in a personal area just isn’t a criminal offense.
In 2023, the then Indian data broadcasting minister warned streaming platforms to not serve abusive and obscene content material. New Delhi has additionally blocked 1000’s of internet sites streaming pornographic content material. On a plea to manage sexually express content material in April this 12 months, India’s Supreme Courtroom additionally issued notices to streaming platforms and the Indian authorities.
That mentioned, curbing obscene content material stays a problem even for the Indian authorities. Smaller streaming companies — like these focused on this crackdown — typically reappear beneath new names, apps, and domains. It’s equally troublesome for intermediaries like Google, Apple, and web suppliers to completely block entry, as these platforms typically unfold via various channels and use social media platforms like Instagram and YouTube to draw viewers.
