No more free streaming: Jio Cinema to Charge for Premium Subscription
Ten News Network
New Delhi (India), 13th May 2023: JioCinema, India’s latest and most prominent OTT platform owned by billionaire entrepreneur Mukesh Ambani, has established a Premium membership service in order to transition away from delivering all content for free via the app.
On the JioCinema website, the Premium subscription, which allows users to watch content from firms such as HBO and Warner Bros., will cost Rs 999 for a whole year.
While the official digital streaming partner of the world’s richest cricket league continues to offer free streaming of the IPL, which is breaking several viewership records this year, ET Online reported that Reliance-owned JioCinema may start charging customers for its content after the Indian Premier League concludes.
This year, IPL streaming is still free, as are certain Bollywood films, such as the most recent addition, Vikram Vedha.
Viacom18 enabled JioCinema to stream HBO, Max Original, and Warner Bros content in India by securing a multi-year, multi-million dollar content partnership with Warner Bros Discovery in late April.
The adoption of the subscription model also contrasts with JioCinema’s record-breaking digital viewership for the IPL, despite JioCinema’s prior year’s free access to the FIFA World Cup.
Jyoti Deshpande, Reliance’s president of media and programming, told Bloomberg in an interview that JioCinema, which is owned by Viacom18, plans to add more than 100 films and TV episodes to its platform.
Ambani is thus utilising the IPL’s success to promote content and, eventually, reveal the pricing strategy for a country of 1.4 billion people who are passionate about both cinema and cricket. In addition, he intends to compete with the world’s titans in online streaming and global media.
JioCinema will offer a selection of subscription-based programmes, including Fatal Attraction, House of the Dragon, The Last of Us, and Game of Thrones. Furthermore, the subscription will provide fans access to films such as the Wonder Woman and Batman v. Superman series, as well as the Harry Potter film series.
With this 12-month membership, users can watch on any device and up to four devices at the same time.
