As Dolby Goes Deeper Into India, Sameer Seth on Preserving Brand Equity at Scale

Ubiquity is good for business. But what does it do to brand equity? Dolby’s expansion across India’s cinemas, OTTs, and cars points to one thing: the company no longer wants to be seen as luxury—it wants to come across as default. That’s a smart licensing play. But it also creates a paradox. When “premium” becomes the baseline, how do you define exceptional? With Dolby Atmos now present on mid-tier smartphones and regional shows, the brand’s next chapter hinges on maintaining quality perception at scale.

In a conversation with BrandWagon Online, Sameer Seth, Director–Marketing, Dolby India, breaks down how the company is scaling its cinema footprint, balancing ubiquity with premium perception, and working with partners across sectors to bring immersive formats to the mainstream. (Edited Excerpts) 

With Dolby Cinema entering India, what kind of content pipeline do you envision supporting this format, and are Indian films being mastered for it?

Globally, Dolby Cinema thrives on content that leans into scale, emotion, and technical finesse and Indian cinema is primed for that. There are 700+ feature films released or committed in Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos worldwide. Among Indian theatrical content, we have had films namely, RRR, Pushpa 2: The Rule, and Game Changer released in Dolby Cinema internationally. With over 20+ Dolby Atmos theatrical mix facilities in India and the recent opening of a Dolby Vision colour grading facility for cinema at Annapurna Studios, Hyderabad, we are equipping creators to deliver content locally that’s ready for Dolby Cinema.

How are you selecting exhibitor partners for Dolby Cinema in India, and what’s your go-to-market strategy to scale this format?

Our exhibitor partners share a common passion for elevating the theatrical experience. The six Indian cities we are bringing Dolby Cinema to this year, starting with Pune, represent a mix of growing cinema markets where consumers also seek a premium theatrical experience. Our strategy is to scale thoughtfully, with over 375+ Dolby Cinema screens worldwide. India is the 16th country. Long-term, we are focused on aligning with consumer demand for premium experiences and growing interest from studios in showcasing films in Dolby Cinema.

Dolby Cinema is rolling out across six Indian cities this year including Pune, Hyderabad, and Trichy. From a market lens, how are ticket yields, footfalls, and consumer sentiment compared versus IMAX and traditional multiplex screens?

Only Dolby Cinema can provide you with a truly unique and transformative experience, helping you connect so deeply with the story, you’ll feel like you’re stepping into the characters’ lives. Dolby Cinema unlocks the emotional impact of every film, allowing you to see the subtle details and ultravivid colours of Dolby Vision, and hear the immersive sound of Dolby Atmos. Dolby Cinema is specially designed to elevate every type of movie experience: from big blockbusters, to arthouse films, and everything in between. You won’t want to experience movies any other way.

With Dolby Cinema we are setting a new benchmark for theatrical storytelling in India. Our exhibitor partners share this common vision.

Dolby Atmos is increasingly ubiquitous—from smartphones and laptops to cars and cinemas. Are you concerned about immersive fatigue or dilution of the premium Dolby brand? How do you maintain both volume and allure?

Consumers today are prioritising premium entertainment experiences across lifestyles – at cinemas, at home, at work or on-the-go. And this is where we come in. Both Dolby Vision & Dolby Atmos are powering these experiences. But ubiquity doesn’t mean uniformity. Our promise is to deliver a premium experience where the consumer is and across device types – from a Television to a smartphone, a laptop or in cars. The more touchpoints consumers have with Dolby, the more they appreciate the experience the tech delivers. That’s not dilution, that’s deepening the relationship.

Dolby licenses its tech to OEMs, studios, OTTs, automotive players—80% of its ~$1 billion revenue comes from licensing. How are you prioritising verticals like automotive versus streaming across regions, and what’s the long‑term mix you’re targeting?

From movies and TV, to music, sports, gaming, and beyond, Dolby unlocks the power of sight and sound in the pursuit of awe inspiring experiences that transform how we connect with each other and the world around us. Each market has a unique growth curve, and in a market like India, we see a powerful intersection of cinema, streaming, and the rise of content consumption on-the-go especially in cars. A car for example used to be just a way to get around. Today it’s a concert hall on wheels. People want connection, emotion and experiences and seamless, immersive entertainment in every journey. Our long-term ambition is to create value wherever storytelling and immersive tech converge.

In India, Dolby’s three-pillar strategy spans content creation, distribution, and devices. Can you walk us through a few ecosystem partners in each pillar, and where you're seeing the fastest traction?

We're inspired by the passion and curiosity of artists, filmmakers, musicians, storytellers, and developers. We enable them with innovative technologies to help them realize their full potential, connect more deeply to audiences, and deliver transformational experiences for billions around the world, with our audio visual experiences namely Dolby Atmos & Dolby Vision.

Dolby is deeply embedded end-to-end, from content creation, to distribution, to the consumer experience. On the content side, we work with filmmakers, musicians, technicians, studios, production houses, music labels etc. For distribution, we’re deeply integrated with streaming services, broadcasters etc. And on the playback end, we collaborate with OEMs who sell devices like TVs, home theatres, soundbars, AVRs, Set-Top-Box, smart-speakers, smartphones, tablets PCs, TWS and even cars. We are seeing strong traction at the intersection of regional storytelling and consumption across lifestyles.

You’ve integrated Atmos into Mahindra EVs like the BE 6 and XEV 9e, and globally you’re now with 25+ automakers. What deployment challenges remain—from tuning in unique Indian cabins to local content availability?

In India, bringing Dolby Atmos to Mahindra’s BE6, XEV 9E, Thar Roxx etc is a milestone. Each vehicle cabin is unique, so we work closely with OEMs to fine-tune for space & acoustics. We also work with our streaming partners to ensure there's Dolby Atmos-enabled content to enjoy which is where our momentum in streaming, music, and now cinema helps create a flywheel.

Dolby Atmos is designed to integrate smoothly into a wide range of car audio subsystems, new or old. With adaptable capabilities, our teams are able to fine-tune the experience, from sound design and speaker layout to audio zoning for various passenger seating arrangements. The result is an immersive, spatially accurate immersive audio experience no matter where you’re seated.

Dolby is working closely with regional OTT platforms like Aha, Hoichoi, and Sun NXT to badge local-language content with Atmos and Vision. With millions speaking non-English languages, what level of regionalised content—genre and volume are you targeting to truly democratise immersive formats?

We’re democratising Dolby experiences across languages. Our work with Indian streaming services like JioHotstar, Sony LIV, Zee5, Sun NXT, ETV Win, and Hoichoi, among others, are enabling us to deliver a truly immersive experience with Dolby Vision & Dolby Atmos in different Indian languages. Our streaming partners have done a fantastic job with Dolby Vision & Dolby Atmos badging to aid discovery of content that is Dolby-enabled. Consumers across these services can identify content across different genres looking at the title page or in the app UI, where the Dolby badge is prominently displayed.