iWorld
Lionsgate sells Lionsgate Play to Rohit Jain, exits Asia streaming
Mumbai: Lionsgate has pressed pause on its streaming ambitions in South and Southeast Asia, selling Lionsgate Play to its founder and longtime Asia head Rohit Jain in a deal estimated at up to $30 million.
While the financial terms were not disclosed, media reports estimate the transaction value at between $20 million and $30 million, comprising an upfront payment followed by instalments. Lionsgate is believed to have invested close to $100 million in building the platform over the years.
Launched and scaled by Jain in one of the world’s most crowded streaming markets, Lionsgate Play has grown into a premium OTT service with around five million paid subscribers across the region.
Under a multi-year agreement, Lionsgate will continue to license its brand name and film and television catalogue to the platform, allowing Lionsgate Play to operate independently while retaining access to Hollywood content that made it popular with audiences.
The sale marks a full-circle moment for Jain, who will now run the platform under founder-led ownership and exit Lionsgate entirely. Importantly, all other Lionsgate film and television businesses in India and Southeast Asia will remain with the studio.
Lionsgate COO Brian Goldsmith praised Jain’s contribution, noting that the Lionsgate brand gained strong traction in Asia under his leadership. He added that Jain’s entrepreneurial mindset and deep regional understanding position Lionsgate Play well for its next phase of growth.
Jain described the acquisition as a personal milestone, thanking Lionsgate leadership for the freedom to build the India business from the ground up. He said the platform is now ready to move beyond being a Hollywood destination and evolve into a differentiated, future-ready streaming service for Asia.
With this deal, Lionsgate trims its regional streaming exposure while Lionsgate Play gets a fresh script under the founder who wrote its first chapter.
iWorld
JioStar revenue hits Rs 9,784 crore as cricket fuels 22 per cent growth
A surge in digital viewership and sports dominance fuels a blockbuster quarter for the media giant
MUMBAI: JioStar is batting on a flat pitch. The media titan’s fourth-quarter results for the financial year 2026 reveal a business scaling new heights, propelled by an unprecedented appetite for premium sports and digital-first storytelling.
Gross revenue for the quarter soared by 22.15 per cent to Rs 9,784 crore, up from Rs 8,010 crore in the third quarter. Operationally, the momentum was equally strong; revenue from operations climbed 21 per cent to Rs 8,372 crore. These figures underscore the firm’s successful integration following the Reliance and Disney merger, creating a dominant force in the Indian market.
The annual performance has been nothing short of a spectacle. Full-year gross revenue reached a massive Rs 36,248 crore, while annual profit after tax hit Rs 3,210 crore. This rapid expansion reflects JioStar’s ability to capture and monetise the massive growth in India’s media consumption.
Cricket proved to be the ultimate growth engine. The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 and TATA IPL 2026 delivered “record-breaking viewership” across both television and digital screens. The World Cup final alone drew a global peak concurrency of 72.5 million on JioHotstar, cementing its status as the nation’s premier streaming destination. On television, JioStar maintained a commanding 34.2 per cent viewership share, reaching a staggering 810 million viewers nationwide.
The digital numbers were just as impressive. JioHotstar averaged 500 million monthly active users, driven by consistent subscriber growth and innovative AI-led content discovery tools. These advancements are ensuring that JioStar remains at the cutting edge of the global “Race for Attention.”
With a firm grip on the country’s most valuable sporting rights and a rapidly growing digital footprint, JioStar is perfectly positioned for the future. It has built the ultimate content powerhouse—one that is ready to dominate the Indian living room for years to come.
