iWorld
ConsCent.ai unveils its intelligent e-reader solution for publishers
Mumbai: ConsCent.ai has introduced an e-reader solution. It is a future system that combines intelligence, engagement, retention and payments, enabling publishers to increase their subscription business by utilising their e-papers and e-magazines.
ConsCent’s e-reader solution aims to restore publishers’ control over their data, and enable them to improve subscription conversions and lifetime value of users using ConsCent’s suite of paywalling, recommendation and engagement suite, bridging the innovation gap in e-publishing services currently used for publishing e-papers.
The product is launched with a goal to reduce cost and increase productivity for publishers by providing them with a full stack solution for all their content offerings in which data is unified, visualisation is simplified, and decision making is faster.
In India, at present e-papers account for about 80 per cent of all digital subscriptions sold, which makes it vital for the digital reader revenue strategy. With these figures, the tool is quite relevant for the upcoming times.
The tool reduces the time required to publish, organise, and maintain e-papers and e-magazines by uploading PDF pages with a single click. It also controls sharing and minimises leaks. It lets the user segment readers, retarget them and connect with them. Other key features of this solution include using information derived from a centralised dashboard and diversifying revenue streams, select, customising and implementing various paywalls (hybrid, dynamic). The tool ensures that users have a pleasurable experience.
For an understanding, 50+ news publishers and OTT platforms in India use ConsCent to maximise user revenue. India Today Group (India Today, Cosmopolitan, and Business Today), Outlook India Group (Outlook India and Outlook Business), MidDay, Jagran News Media, Amar Ujala, Udayavani, Amar Chitra Katha, EPIC On, Tinkle Comics, and are amongst some of the company’s key partners.
ConsCent has surpassed seven lakh users who can access premium content on ConsCent’s partners without creating multiple logins and can unlock premium content with a single click. The firm’s partners have not only increased their paying user base 10X in a year, but have also assisted publishers in making their premium content more discoverable through recommendations, engaging with users through audience segmentation-based targeting, and even retaining them through a host of marketing tools – all through one single dashboard.
ConsCent co-founder and CEO Sunny Sen shared, “Newspapers are the most valuable and editorially rich content produced by publishers. However, if it is limited to print, it loses the ability to develop, maximise brand recognition and truly monetise its content. As readers and advertisers rapidly migrate online and to mobile devices, publishers have little choice, but to adapt.”
However, a digital presence is not sufficient. A publisher must be able to effectively monetise their valuable editorial content, which is essentially a result of how well they can understand their audience and use the information about their preferences, reading habits, reading behaviour, propensity to pay, etc. to deliver them with a personalised experience.
“The option to consume anything at any time with the choice of what time of day you would like to consume your content has made capturing user data an essential requirement for publishers in the internet age. Existing E-publishing software gives publishers little to no control over user behaviour understanding, resulting in a significant loss of user comprehension,” he concluded.
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.
