India’s entertainment landscape is about to witness a major shift as all live sports content from the newly merged Disney-Reliance joint venture will stream exclusively on Disney’s Hotstar app.
This strategic decision, according to sources close to Reuters, includes coveted sporting events like the Indian Premier League (IPL), making Hotstar the go-to destination for live sports in India.
Disney-Reliance JV to Stream Live Sports Exclusively on Hotstar: A Game-Changer for Indian Viewers
Integration of Disney and Reliance Media Assets
This move marks the first major step in the integration of Disney and Reliance’s media assets following their $8.5 billion merger deal, which created India’s largest entertainment company. The merger combines 120 TV channels and two popular streaming platforms — Hotstar and JioCinema — but many questions remain about how the platforms will function together.
Why Hotstar?
The decision to make Hotstar the exclusive platform for live sports streaming comes down to the app’s superior back-end technology, which is better equipped to handle large-scale live content, especially for cricket, where millions of fans watch simultaneously. Hotstar’s proven ability to deliver a glitch-free viewing experience, alongside targeted advertising features, gives it an edge in India’s cricket-obsessed market.
In fact, Hotstar made history last year during the men’s cricket World Cup, with a record-breaking 59 million concurrent viewers, showcasing its prowess in live streaming under intense demand.
IPL and More on Hotstar
This means that IPL, the crown jewel of Indian sports, will shift back to Hotstar, a significant change since Reliance’s JioCinema had previously held the IPL rights. Beyond IPL, Hotstar will also stream other key sports events like the Winter Olympics and Indian Super League football, along with its existing rights to ICC cricket tournaments, the English Premier League, and Pro Kabaddi League.
Uncertain Future of JioCinema
While the focus on live sports is clear, there’s still uncertainty surrounding how the merger will affect the distribution of other entertainment content. One possibility, according to sources, is that the two apps may eventually consolidate into a single platform, but no final decision has been made.
What’s Next?
The transition to streaming live sports exclusively on Hotstar is expected to be completed by January 2024, according to internal communications shared during a recent town hall. As Disney and Reliance continue to dominate the cricket broadcasting space, they’ve also reassured regulators they won’t raise advertising rates unfairly, a commitment made during the approval process for the merger.
via Reuters
