JioStar, the newly formed media giant, is reportedly considering removing its entertainment content from YouTube in an effort to curb the migration of subscribers from traditional television to free online streaming. According to an Economic Times report citing sources, the move could take effect from May 1, though a final decision has yet to be made.
JioStar’s Aggressive Push Towards Paid Streaming
JioStar was formed through the mega-merger of Reliance Industries Ltd’s (RIL) media business with Viacom18 and The Walt Disney Company’s Indian operations. Last month, the company launched JioHotstar, a unified streaming platform combining content from JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar.
In a strategic shift, JioStar has moved a significant portion of its content, including sports, behind a paywall on JioHotstar. The company is also in discussions with Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea (Vi) to bundle JioHotstar subscriptions with their data plans ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.
Aiming for 1 Billion Viewers for IPL 2025
JioStar is targeting a massive audience of over 1 billion across television and digital platforms for the upcoming IPL season. Last year, JioCinema recorded a staggering 35,000 crore minutes of watch time during IPL 2024, with its reach surging by 38% to 62 crore viewers.
According to RIL’s annual report for FY24:
- Disney+ Hotstar had 35.5 million paid subscribers as of June 2024.
- JioCinema became the fastest-growing subscription-based OTT platform, reaching 16 million paid subscribers by September 2024.
Restructuring and Cost-Cutting Measures
Since the merger, JioStar has been restructuring its business. The company recently initiated a layoff exercise to eliminate overlapping roles, which could impact around 1,100 employees by June 2025.
Monetizing IPL with SME Advertising Packages
Ahead of IPL 2025, JioHotstar is aggressively onboarding startups and SMEs for advertising opportunities, offering packages ranging from INR 15 lakh to INR 1.5 crore.
As JioStar pivots toward a subscription-driven model, its decision to remove free content from YouTube and focus on paid streaming could significantly impact India’s digital entertainment landscape.
