Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) is positioning JioCinema as its flagship OTT platform following the merger of Star and Viacom18, forming an $8.5 billion media conglomerate. RIL, which will control the merged entity after regulatory approval, is considering consolidating its streaming services under one OTT App. This consolidation aims to streamline services and possibly integrate Disney+ Hotstar into JioCinema. However, despite its ambition to compete with giants like Netflix, Apple TV+, and Amazon Prime, RIL’s OTT has been criticised for its technical issues, including a poor app interface and streaming glitches.
This would potentially include integrating Disney+ Hotstar, despite it having more downloads (500 million) than JioCinema (100 million). The merger would create a comprehensive OTT platform, combining content from Disney, HBO, and Indian Premier League rights, intensifying competition in the streaming sector.
While Jio boasts over 225 million users monthly, its user experience often falls short, especially compared to Hotstar’s smoother interface. As RIL moves to establish JioCinema as India’s leading streaming platform, the app’s tech infrastructure quality could become a major stumbling block. Users have reported frequent lags, buffering issues, and a less intuitive design, which raises concerns about its ability to handle the influx of Disney+ Hotstar’s massive subscriber base.
The success of this consolidation largely depends on JioCinema’s technical upgrades to meet increasing user demands. A poor user experience could drive subscribers away, threatening RIL’s dominance in the competitive OTT market even with benefits from exclusive content rights, including cricket, improving its technology is crucial to long-term success.
As the competition tightens in both subscription-based and advertising-supported video-on-demand services, JioCinema must evolve from a quantity-based strategy to a quality-centric platform to secure its place as India’s premier OTT service.
