Scriptwriter Jaidev Hemmady says he has not been able to watch Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and The Little Drummer Girl in India because the platforms that stream these series in other markets are not showing them here. Recently, paid Indian subscribers of Apple TV could not watch the documentary series on legendary film director Martin Scorsese, because the series was not released in the India region.

These are among many programmes that paid subscribers of the local arms of international platforms say are not available for viewing in India, even though the same platforms stream the content elsewhere.

Entertainment industry executives cite licensing agreements to censorship clearance as reasons for platforms not releasing content simultaneously in different markets. "Generally, content produced or acquired by a streamer is sold on a territory-to-territory basis. Streamers release content in specific territories where they have their best footprint," said Rajat Agrawal, chief operating officer at Ultra Media and Entertainment Group, which owns the streaming platform Ultra Play.

"Streamers estimate content costs and devise ways of recovering costs. They identify markets and ways through which high revenues can be generated," Agrawal added.

Typically, streamers recover close to 50% of the content cost by releasing content on their own platforms through subscription, rental services and advertisements, said industry experts. They recover the remaining cost either by selling distribution rights to other streamers or to sales agents (who in turn sell distribution rights to streamers). This strategy decides the availability of content for viewing in a region.

Censorship clearance is another key factor. "A new censorship clearance is required for each territory to show streaming content in countries other than where it was originally censored," said Arun Kumar, a Chennai-based content syndicator who works with streamers and TV channels.

Marketing strategies of the platforms also play a role in its availability in a region. "Streamers release content in a staggered manner from one region to another. It is a part of a marketing strategy," explained Anushree Rauta, head of the media and entertainment practice at law firm ANM Global.

Apart from these, content reach and distribution costs could be possible reasons. "After evaluating content reach and its suitability in a region, streamers also consider operational costs involved in distributing content. There are costs related to servers and other technical infrastructure. So, if there is not a sufficiently high audience in a region, a streamer may not release content in that region," said Shrirang Nargund, an independent consultant on the streaming business.

What’s the one thing that has changed for the actor after Foundation? That’s the note on which we begin our chat with Kubbra Sait, who is a contender in the Best Online Sensation category at the third edition of mid-day and Radio City Hitlist OTT Awards, thanks to her role in the Apple TV series.

“I’m consciously putting myself out there more. I’m willing to chase more work across the globe. For a long time, I felt no one watched the show in India. But Apple TV is becoming a big thing now. The show was the start of bigger things for me. It gives me confidence that I was the only Indian in one of the biggest science fiction shows made in [recent times],” she exclaims.

Sait plays the antagonist, Phara in the series. “Earlier, people knew me as Cuckoo [her character in Sacred Games]. Now, I am Phara.” She adds that it was initially difficult to understand Phara’s menacing ways. “She was brutal. Her death is [more than] just about the bad guy dying.”

Game for more projects in the West, she admits she is being perceived differently on home turf too. Citing the example of a chat with filmmaker Rohan Sippy, she says, “[When we met], he said, ‘Hail Phara’. [The show] has left a lasting impact on those who watched it.”

Cast your vote for the Hitlist OTT Awards

Kubbra Sait has been nominated in the Best Online Sensation category for Foundation. The other nominees are:

. Anupam Tripathi (Squid Game, Netflix)

. Bhuvan Bam (Dhindora, YouTube)

. Sahdev Dirdo (Bachpan Ka Pyaar, YouTube)

. Sunny Hinduja (Aspirants, YouTube)

. Vir Das (Two Indias, social media)

Log on to www.radiocity.in/hitlistawards to cast your vote.

You can also vote via SMS. Send HITLIST <space> category name <space> your choice (a/b/c as on the website) to 57575.

Voting lines close on March 18.