Streaming service 'Hooq' launched in India at Rs. 199/month

Do you think, Users will choose this Service over piracy?

  • Yeaaap!

    Votes: 21 50.0%

  • No yar, Torrents hai na!

    Votes: 21 50.0%
  • Total voters
    42
  • Poll closed .
Anyone know if downloads would be DRM Free? Or does downloaded content "expire" after a set time?

I assume its the latter considering its a "paid subscription service" which is also why I wouldn't subscribe to it myself.

I personally expect "paid for" content - whether its games, music or whatever else - to be available whenever I want. If the content ceases to be available the moment I stop my sub then this is not the kind of service I would personally opt for.

I do however understand that there a plenty of people who only watch their content once and possibly never again which would make this service an absolute steal at a paltry Rs.199 pm.

With Netflix rumored to enter India sometime 2016 the competition is going to be pretty intense.

I don't torrent so I couldn't vote or see the result. Whats the score ATM? Curious to know.

The other competitor mentioned in that article - ie. Ogle appears to have no "offline" option at all with "always online" being compulsory which is even more restrictive IMO...
 
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Thanks Kidrow.

If anyone actually subs and can confirm that the content is "DRM Free" ie - any content downloaded during the period of the sub can be viewed offline forever- please do let me know.

I for one won't be holding my breath that it actually works that way though... :p
 
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^ They have a free trial iinm (7days). You could opt for that, unsubscribe before 7 days & see how it goes.

https://www.hooq.tv/in/faqs/?section=free-trial

screenshot-www hooq tv 2015-06-27 20-24-33.jpg
 
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Thanks for that link. Went through the FAQ and found they don't support PC's for downloads at all - only Tabs & Smartphones.

End of story as far as I am concerned as I wanted it for my PC exclusively...
 
So much for the 199 Rupees? :facepalm:

kidrow said:
Surprised a bit by the voting results. The nays/torrents have it?! Rs. 200 seems more than reasonable.
Click to expand...
Typical Indian mentality. Why pay when you get the same content for FREE?
Even the BIGFLIX STREAMING is 25% costlier, 249/month. BIGFLIX has relatively very less collection. This is like Cheap and Affordable.
If these services like HOOQ or NETFLIX wants to survive, ISP's should Impose Ticket system like US ISP's.
 
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^Ticket System? - Could you please elaborate?

Agree with you in that it's very well priced. Sure, there are problems, but those stem from the ISP's end.

FWIW, cable tv costs about Rs. 300+ these days. So this pricing is really attractive. Sad that software piracy is so ingrained in our psyche that we won't support even low cost initiatives.

PS: Guess not too many Indians avail of the benefits of the Steam sale either. Just the other day, I was wondering if there are some stats for sale by country with respect to sale of PC games via Steam during their sale periods.
 
kidrow said:
^Ticket System? - Could you please elaborate?
Click to expand...
Most of the US ISP's issue tickets (Warning) when you download Copyrighted content, After 3-4 warnings they will Suspend your connection and blacklist your address, so that you do not get an New connection. If you are an Mass Pirate, You will get an Legal notice.
Unfair? They have Legal Streaming Services for as low as $8, First Access to New content .. Why do they need Piracy?

Though in India piracy is kinda justifiable considering NO access to New content/ Heavy Censoring.
 
swatkats said:
Most of the US ISP's issue tickets (Warning) when you download Copyrighted content, After 3-4 warnings they will Suspend your connection and blacklist your address, so that you do not get an New connection. If you are an Mass Pirate, You will get an Legal notice.
Unfair? They have Legal Streaming Services for as low as $8, First Access to New content .. Why do they need Piracy?

Though in India piracy is kinda justifiable considering NO access to New content/ Heavy Censoring.
Click to expand...

I did get a notice from TWC a month back. I have instructed my wife to not download anything from torrents. I believe they don't care about direct downloads but can detect torrents. I have now resorted to websites like zbigz etc and that too very rarely. I am now an amazon prime member so now I am able to stream some stuff but with a kid, we rarely get time to do so. Netflix is also there but not subscribed.
 
This sounds good. But am not able to see the complete catalogue (atleast without signup). On the main page we can see only 10-15 movies. Also I think it asks for your credit card details so they can start charging you upon completion of 7 day trial.

I think I will let this service mature a before taking the plunge.
 
You can use debit and net banking for payment, looks like credit card is mandatory for trial.

@raksrules Yeah, unencrypted content. My friend had been insisting me to give my seedbox until he got his own Netflix account.
 
Meh. Its 226 a month after taxes. The TV show collection is laughable.

MH08KK9.jpg


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They use Silverlight for streaming on Windows, which is going to be obsolete soon.

This is the 'high' quality

hSPzjUu.jpg
 
Highly idiotic service.. .I signed up .. fill up all my card details.. card gets charged and then it again throws the sign-up screen to me !!
I cant login to their stupid website. may need to cancel the card now.
Hate these auto-renewal type of subscriptions.
 
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