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Hotstar and JioCinema, two of India’s most popular video streaming apps, have merged into a new entity named JioHotstar.
JioStar, a joint venture between Reliance-owned Viacom18 and Star India announced that it has integrated JioCinema’s content into a revamped version of Diseny’s Hotstar platform.
Now live in India, JioHotstar offers an extensive library featuring hundreds of thousands of hours of local content, over 100 live TV channels, and a vast collection of movies and shows from Disney, Warner Bros., HBO, NBCUniversal, and Paramount. With an ambitious target of reaching over 500 million users, the platform is set to dominate India’s streaming market.
JioHotstar currently provides content in 19 languages and produces an impressive 30,000 hours of TV programming annually. Subscription plans start at ₹179 ($1.71) for three months with ads and ₹299 ($3.45) per month for an ad-free experience, which allows simultaneous streaming on up to four devices.
This consolidation closely follows Reliance’s $8.5 billion merger with Walt Disney’s Indian assets. This eventually led to a joint venture that controls 85% of India’s streaming market and half of television viewership.
A major highlight of the merger is the unification of India’s most valuable sports rights under one platform. JioHotstar now holds exclusive digital streaming rights for cricket tournaments like the Indian Premier League (IPL) and International Cricket Council (ICC) events, as well as international sports like the English Premier League and the FIFA World Cup.
As part of the transition, the JioCinema app will be phased out once current subscriptions expire. Existing JioCinema subscribers will be seamlessly migrated to JioHotstar, ensuring a smooth transition.
The consolidation underscores the difficulties foreign media groups face in India’s price-sensitive market. Despite significant investments in local content, Netflix and Amazon Prime Video continue to struggle with paid subscription growth, while JioHotstar cements its dominance in the country’s entertainment sector.
