Mukesh Ambani, the owner and leader of Reliance Industries, announced plans for its subsidiary Jio Cinema to take on global streaming giants like Disney+ Hotstar and Netflix. The company aims to add over 100 movies and TV shows to expand the streaming service and compete with major international players in the rapidly growing Indian market.
Jio Cinema will introduce new titles before the end of the Indian Premier League next month, focusing on its successful cricket broadcasts to boost its popularity. Jyoti Deshpande, the media and content business president of Jio Cinema, confirmed to Bloomberg that the platform would roll out the new content to attract more users.
Why It Matters:
Reliance Industries recently revived the Campa-Cola brand to compete with Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, and Mukesh Ambani is now focused on establishing Reliance as a major player in the global media and online streaming industry, with Jio Cinema set to be a key part of this strategy.
Jyoti Deshpande, the media and content business president of Jio Cinema, confirmed that the platform would start charging for content as it expands, although they are still discussing the exact pricing details. However, viewers can currently watch cricket matches for free.
Reliance Industries made a critical move in establishing its joint venture with Paramount Global, Viacom18 Media Pvt., to win the digital rights to the Indian Premier League in 2020. The IPL is one of the most-watched sports events globally, and securing these rights was essential for any media company looking to gain viewership in India.
Securing IPL rights was critical for Reliance in establishing Jio Cinema as a dominant player in the Indian media and online streaming industry. During the IPL opening weekend in April, JioCinema received over 1.47 billion video views, and a single match last Wednesday had 22 million viewers.
This article Netflix, Disney Face New Threat In India As Country’s Richest Person Plots Gigantic Streaming Expansion originally appeared on Benzinga.com