A key cricket match between India and New Zealand broke all previous records for on-demand video streaming on Wednesday, drawing over 51 million concurrent viewers to Walt Disney Co (NYSE: DIS) Hotstar.
This achievement surpassed Hotstar's previous record of 44 million simultaneous viewers set earlier in the month.
With these numbers, Hotstar has established a significant lead in concurrent viewership over its competitor, Mukesh Ambani-backed Viacom18's JioCinema, which peaked at 32 million earlier this year, TechCrunch reports.
Disney is offering free streaming of ICC World Cup cricket matches to mobile users in India as it faced declining digital subscribers in the country, with Hotstar losing over 23 million subscribers in 2022.
Disney CEO Bob Iger wanted to continue operations in India, where the TV business remains profitable and is exploring options.
Disney has engaged in preliminary discussions with several entities, including Reliance and private equity firms, for its India business, once a critical asset of Fox before Disney's acquisition.
However, the challenging market conditions and focus shifts to core businesses have altered Star India's prospects.
Additionally, Mukesh Ambani's Viacom18, supported by Bodhi Tree and former Fox executives, has drawn top talent from Star India and invested heavily in streaming rights for the IPL cricket tournament, intensifying competition for Hotstar.