Amagi Media Labs Limited reported a 55% year-over-year increase in global Free Ad-supported Streaming TV (FAST) viewing hours for the period April 1 – June 15, 2026, according to its June 2026 AIRTIME Report. The data, drawn from approximately 6,500 FAST channel deliveries distributed via the company's Amagi THUNDERSTORM platform, also showed a 53% rise in ad impressions compared to the same period in 2025. The report underscores the sector's robust expansion and identifies metadata management as a critical operational bottleneck affecting revenue and discovery.

The U.S. and Canada remained the largest monetization markets, accounting for 54% of global viewing hours and 74% of global ad impressions. However, LATAM recorded the strongest regional growth, with viewing hours up 190% and ad impressions up 124%, supported by the addition of new high-viewership channels and portfolio expansion. Entertainment maintained its position as the leading global genre, contributing 41% of classified viewing hours and 40% of ad impressions, while News accounted for 27% of viewing hours but delivered 33% of ad impressions.

The Kids genre emerged as the highest-growth category globally, with viewing hours surging 191% and ad impressions increasing 118% year-over-year. The report also highlights a significant industry focus on the operational costs associated with poor metadata, which is impacting discovery and revenue generation across the FAST value chain.

Metadata challenges and survey findings

The June 2026 report features a pulse survey of 28 senior practitioners, including content owners, channel operators, and technology vendors. The survey reveals that 86% of respondents identify reformatting metadata to meet different platform requirements as their single biggest operational drag. Additionally, 86% indicated that poor metadata is actively costing them money through lost ad revenue, weaker discovery, or content deprioritization by platforms.

Other key findings indicate that 71% of respondents find metadata arriving from content owners is often incomplete, missing genres, ratings, imagery, or episode data. Looking ahead, 57% believe AI can already generate synopses, tags, and genres reliably enough that human review only needs to be a spot-check. Furthermore, 68% expect AI to handle most metadata generation with minimal human oversight within three years, and an equal percentage anticipate major streaming platforms will dictate metadata standards in the same timeframe.

Investment priorities and industry outlook

When asked about investment plans to improve metadata over the next 12 months, 32% of respondents cited better AI tooling as their primary focus, followed by 25% who plan to build in-house metadata capability. Gavin Bridge, Chief Analyst at FASTMaster, contributed an analysis to the report, identifying three structural tensions shaping the metadata challenge, including the format delivery "tax" and the increasing dependence of discovery layers on AI agents.

Srinivasan KA, Co-founder and President - Global Business at Amagi, commented on the findings, stating that FAST has secured its place at the center of the modern media stack. He noted that the next competitive edge lies in operational precision rather than reach, emphasizing that metadata is where discovery, ad revenue, and audience intelligence converge. The full report is available on the company's investor relations website.

Amagi Media Labs has received a continued vote of confidence from Goldman Sachs, which has maintained its Buy rating on the company with a target price of ₹480. The brokerage's optimistic stance is underpinned by a combination of strong industry tailwinds, artificial intelligence-led opportunities, and compelling financial projections over the medium term.

Key Investment Highlights

Goldman Sachs outlines several factors supporting its bullish outlook on Amagi Media Labs. The firm points to robust industry growth dynamics and the expanding role of AI as central to the company's long-term value proposition. The following table summarises the key financial metrics cited by Goldman Sachs:

Financial Projections and Growth Drivers

Goldman Sachs projects a 20% revenue CAGR for Amagi Media Labs over the FY26–30 period, reflecting confidence in the company's ability to capitalise on industry expansion and AI-driven product development. Alongside revenue growth, the brokerage anticipates meaningful margin expansion, with EBITDA margins expected to improve from 10% to 20%, signalling increasing operational efficiency.

The firm also highlights high operating leverage as a structural advantage, which is expected to amplify profitability as revenues scale. A 42% EBITDA CAGR is projected over the same period, complemented by robust free cash flow growth, reinforcing the overall positive financial outlook for the company.

Summary

Goldman Sachs' maintained Buy rating and ₹480 target price on Amagi Media Labs reflects a broadly positive assessment of the company's growth trajectory. The brokerage's projections — spanning a 20% revenue CAGR, margin expansion from 10% to 20%, a 42% EBITDA CAGR, and strong free cash flow generation over FY26–30 — underscore the firm's conviction in Amagi Media Labs' long-term business fundamentals and AI-led opportunities.