iWorld
Jio, Reliance Retail offer freebies with iPhone7, 7+
MUMBAI: Even before the iPhone7 became available in retail stores, Apple had announced that the flood of pre-orders had resulted it being sold out in the US. The Cupertino – hqed company is pulling out all the stops to ensure that its debut in India generates as much of good news. And it’s tie ups with the Mukesh Ambai owned Reliance Retail and Jio are steps in that direction.
Buyers of a new iPhone7 and iPhone7 Plus, are being offered Rs 1,499 worth Jio Digital Life services complimentary for 12 months from 1 January 2017. This includes unlimited local, STD and national roaming voice, unlimited text, 20 GB of 4G Data, 40 GB of WiFi Data and Unlimited Night 4G Data, unlimited subscription to premium Jio Applications. The offer is valid in Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Bengaluru only.
And it has also been extended to new purchases of older iPhone models such as the 6s, 6s+, 6, 6+, 5SE across all Reliance Digital stores and select Apple Premium Resellers (APR) and Apple Authorized Resellers (AAR).
Plus of course, they are entitled to the three months of free data, voice and app services until 31 December 2016. Making it a total of 15 months of freebies if they buy one of the above iPhone models now.
“Today’s announcement brings together India’s best premium 4G network with the incredible iPhone experience,” said Jio president Mathew Oommen. “Jio is India’s 4G-only network, providing high-speed internet across India. The true power of iPhones can now be experienced by all Indian iPhone users on the Jio network.”
Reliance Retail is offering users the convenience of pre-ordering the iPhone models online and having them delivered, installed and activated with Jio services in their homes.
“It’s a great initiative by Apple, Jio and Reliance Retail,” says a marketing consultant. “It should lead to volume uptakes. However, With Jio’s calls now getting connected with other mobile telcos easier than before, one will have to wait and watch whether it can provide consistent service in both data speeds and in voice.”
Jio is currently under challenge from other mobile providers like Airtel, Vodafone and Idea who have also shaved their 4G wireless broadband prices, in line with it playing the volume and price warrior game.
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.
