JioHotstar Streaming Service Goes Global With Launches Across UK, Canada & Singapore

India’s JioStar is launching its JioHotstar streaming brand in UK, Canada and Singapore, replacing the existing Hotstar service and upgrading some of the interactive and user experience features on the app in those three markets. At launch on September 2, the new service will offer Hotstar Originals – including series such as Asur, Pritam & Pedro, Special Ops, Criminal Justice, Heartbeat and Resort – alongside films including recent hits Dhurandhar, 12th Fail and Chhichhore. The initial offering will also include reality franchise Bigg Boss, across six languages, enabling audiences in UK, Canada and Singapore to vote live across all editions. Audiences in Canada and the UK will have access to the 24×7 Live Feed, while Canadian consumers will able to watch Bigg Boss Hindi seven days ahead of its TV broadcast. Audiences in Canada and Singapore will also be able to stream a new format, India Ka Top 1 Percent, hosted by major star Anil Kapoor, which tests contestants’ logic and reasoning. They will also receive early access to content from JioStar television channels (including Star Plus, Colors, Star Vijay, Asianet, Star Jalsha and Star Pravah) through a Before-TV feature. Watch on Deadline Audiences in the UK can watch popular shows simultaneously with their TV broadcast, alongside regional and daily entertainment. In total, JioHotstar is making more than 160,000 hours of content available in those three markets, along with personalized recommendations, upgraded UX, and subtitles and dubs across 12 Asian languages, with plans to add 30,000 hours of fresh content added annually. In a statement, JioHotstar said the service is “designed to resonate deeply with the South Asian diaspora while appealing to a broader global audience”. In another move, JioStar appears to be doing away with monthly subscription plans, at least outside of India. In the UK, the service will be charged at GBP19.99 for a quarterly subscription and GBP69.99 for an annual subscription. In Canada, it’s available for CAD 19.99 quarterly and CAD49.99 annually, and in Singapore it’s being charged at SGD29.98 quarterly and SGD69.98 annually. In the UK, existing subscribers will be able to continue using their current monthly subscription plans, until the plan renews. Amit Malhotra, Head of International Business, JioStar, said: “Streaming has spent the last decade competing on the size of its catalogue. We believe the bigger opportunity now is to reimagine how audiences experience entertainment; not just what they watch, but how they discover, engage with and shape the experience in real time. “South Asian audiences have a deep connection with Indian entertainment across languages, generations and households. At the same time, audiences globally are increasingly seeking stories and cultures beyond their own. We see an opportunity to build for this broader, underserved global audience – not simply export an Indian streaming service to new markets.” JioHotstar, formed following the merger of Disney India and Mukesh Ambani’s sprawling Reliance Industries group, has more than 500 million monthly active users and around 300,000 hours of programming.