iWorld
Discovery Plus subscription well ahead of estimation: Issac John
KOLKATA: Just as the pandemic starting snarling in India, Discovery Plus had only just taken off its OTT journey. However, the lockdown and the boost it gave to digital viewing seems to have aided the new entrant.
“We launched on the eve of lockdown. So a lot of OTTs have data that how subscribers were moving before and how they are behaving after it. We didn't have that visibility. We were in the lockdown when we launched and consumption happened during the lockdown and we continue to live through this. But, our subscription estimates are actually well ahead of what we had estimated. There has definitely been a lot of consumer love that's come our way in terms of consumers going for Discovery Plus subscriptions,” says Discovery Digital (south Asia) business head Issac John.
Some other indicators, John said, were the 4.5 ratings for the app on App Store and Play Store as well as qualitative comments such as being able to watch with their families. He added that Discovery Plus is the only OTT player which works with two kinds of vectors. While one is essentially the lifelong learner’s vector, it is also catering to certain passion verticals.
After getting consumer requests, Discovery Plus has also launched its service on Fire TV, even though its main priority was iOS, Android and mobile web. Android TV app is also on the way.
“We have seen time spent on Fire TV is 2.4x than the mobile format. I think what ends up happening is that when you consume content as premium as we have at Discovery Plus, your attachment to the content really goes up significantly That is also essentially like a clear sign on of how consumers love us on the big screen,” John added.
Discovery Plus, emphasising the big-screen delight experience, launched a new marketing campaign that runs across all 14 Discovery network channels as well as on all key digital platforms.
“A part of our retention strategy is to ensure that the consumers have enough choice pertaining to the specific interests they came for. Moreover, at any point in time, in any given month, we will launch anywhere between 20 to 30 shows from our bank which is a mix of specials, exclusive acquisitions, etc,” John stated.
John said that it would be launching some premium BBC titles to strengthen the learning vector as well as female-friendly content, which haven’t been exposed so far.
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iWorld
T20 World Cup ’26: India–England semi-final sets global streaming record of 619 million views on JioHotstar
India–England semi-final records 65.2 million peak streams
MUMBAI: The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 set a new milestone in global sports streaming, as the India–England semi-final drew record digital audiences on JioHotstar.
The match on 5 March registered 65.2 million peak concurrent viewers, the highest ever recorded for a live event on any streaming platform worldwide. The semi-final also generated 619 million views, making it the most streamed T20 international match in history.
The landmark audience numbers were driven largely by viewers in India, setting a record achieved within a single market, rather than through aggregated viewership across multiple countries.
The high-scoring encounter between India national cricket team and England cricket team produced 499 runs across both innings, fuelling widespread fan engagement across platforms.
According to the International Cricket Council, the digital record surpassed the previous global benchmark of 65 million concurrent viewers, set in November 2024 by another international streaming platform.
Across television and digital platforms combined, the semi-final reached more than 320 million viewers, while total watch time exceeded 23 billion minutes, making it the most watched T20 international match ever.
“This World Cup demonstrates the immense passion of cricket fans and the progress made in bringing the game closer to audiences worldwide,” said ICC chairman Jay Shah.
“This moment reflects the scale of cricket fandom in India and the technological capability required to serve hundreds of millions of viewers simultaneously.”
JioStar vice-chairman Uday Shankar, said the audience surge underscored the future of large-scale digital entertainment.
“One in every three Indians tuned in to watch the second semi-final. Delivering such an experience at scale requires the very best of technology,” he said.
The 619 million views during the match also eclipsed the 533 million views recorded during the final of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.
With the final yet to be played, the 2026 tournament has already set multiple benchmarks in audience reach and digital engagement.
India will face the New Zealand national cricket team in the final on 8 March at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The match will be broadcast on the Star Sports Network and streamed on JioHotstar.
