Disney gambles on free cricket to turn the tables in India’s streaming war.

Delhi: Walt Disney is attempting to revive the fortunes of its streaming business in India by offering free cricket on smartphones, betting that the strategy will boost advertising revenue and offset the impact of a subscriber exodus In 2019, as part of a $71 billion deal to acquire various global assets from 21st Century Fox, the company also gained control of the Indian streaming platform Hotstar. The streaming rights for the immensely popular Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament were included in this acquisition. Consequently, in 2020, Disney transformed cricket streaming on Hotstar into a subscription-based service. The company had optimistic expectations of attracting as many as 100 million subscribers over the following years.

Last year, Indian magnate Mukesh Ambani secured the IPL broadcasting rights with a substantial $2.9 billion offer. Subsequently, he proceeded to stream the cricket matches at no cost. As a result of this move, Disney witnessed a significant exodus of subscribers. By July, approximately 21 million out of the 61 million users in October had discontinued their subscriptions.

Internally, Disney acknowledges its miscalculation regarding the willingness of Indian viewers to subscribe. According to two sources within Disney, individuals initially signed up for Hotstar due to the presence of the IPL, but they did not remain as subscribers to purchase higher-tier plans for accessing other premium content.