India’s JioCinema broke the global record for the most concurrent views to a live streamed event on Monday, eclipsing a long-standing milestone set by Disney’s Hotstar, as the Asian tycoon Mukesh Ambani spares no expense in expanding his digital empire.
the Indian streaming platform, whose investor includes James Murdoch’s Bodhi Tree-backed Viacom18, drew over 33 million simultaneous viewers for the finale of the 16th edition of the Indian Premier League cricket tournament, featuring Chennai Super Kings versus Gujarat Titans.
In what was a high point for Hotstar, the platform drew an impressive 25.3 million simultaneous viewers for a cricket match in July 2019, a record that went unchallenged for several years. However, as the platform shifted the IPL streaming service to a paid format, it grappled to surpass this benchmark in the subsequent years, underscoring the complexities in balancing reach and revenue within the streaming sector.
As part of its streaming strategy, Viacom18’s JioCinema app is offering free streaming of the tournament to audiences across South Asia, a move that could potentially reshape the region’s digital streaming landscape, analysts say.