JioCinema and Disney Plus Hotstar are to be merged
JioCinema and Disney Plus Hotstar are to be merged
Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries (RIL) is gearing up to merge JioCinema with Disney+ Hotstar, positioning the latter as the primary streaming platform for the newly unified entity. After evaluating several options, RIL chose to retain Disney+ Hotstar, largely due to its superior technological capabilities and broader market presence.
\This decision follows RIL’s August move to integrate JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar under a single platform, taking advantage of Disney+ Hotstar’s vast user base, with over 500 million downloads compared to JioCinema’s 100 million. – JioCinema and Disney Plus Hotstar are to be merged
Earlier this year, RIL and Walt Disney struck a deal to merge Star India and Viacom18, forming a media giant valued at $8.5 billion. The merged company will boast over 100 television channels and two streaming services, creating a formidable presence in the entertainment industry.
According to RIL’s annual report, JioCinema attracted around 225 million monthly users, while Disney+ Hotstar had 333 million active users in the last quarter of 2023. However, Disney+ Hotstar has seen a sharp decline in its paid subscriber base, dropping from 61 million to 35.5 million, largely due to the loss of key content like the Indian Premier League (IPL) and HBO shows.
This development follows Viacom18’s earlier move to consolidate its various streaming services, including Voot, Voot Select, and Voot Kids, into JioCinema, further streamlining its digital offerings.
JioCinema and Disney Plus Hotstar are to be merged
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