JioHotstar is expanding into the Middle East and North Africa through a partnership with regional streaming service Starzplay, extending its international presence after launching in the U.K., Canada, and Singapore in September. The service will appear as a dedicated section inside Starzplay rather than operating as a standalone platform.
The partnership gives viewers access to JioHotstar films, television series, originals, and reality programming across several Indian languages. New JioHotstar originals will also premiere in MENA at the same time as their release in India.
Starzplay Will Host JioHotstar Content
The catalog will include programming in Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Bangla, and other languages, with audio available in up to 10 languages for some titles. Shows such as “Bigg Boss” and “Koffee with Karan” will be included, while JioHotstar is placing additional emphasis on Malayalam programming for the region’s large Malayali population.
The arrangement differs from JioHotstar’s September expansion into the U.K., Canada, and Singapore. In those markets, JioHotstar replaced the existing Hotstar service and launched as its own streaming platform.
JioHotstar’s sports catalog in India will not be included directly in the MENA offering. However, customers can subscribe to a bundle combining JioHotstar with Starzplay sports content, including cricket, for AED 49.99, or about $13.60, per month.
JioHotstar is also included with Starzplay’s Plus subscription, which costs AED 34.99, or around $9.50, per month. Financial terms of the partnership were not disclosed.
Reliance Continues JioHotstar’s Overseas Expansion
JioHotstar was formed after Reliance Industries and Disney combined their Indian media operations in an $8.5 billion joint venture in 2024. The platform launched in India in February 2025 after combining JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar.
The service now reports more than 500 million monthly active users. Its overseas expansion is focused partly on markets with large South Asian diaspora populations, giving Reliance an existing audience for Indian-language entertainment.
Hotstar previously had a presence in MENA through a distribution agreement involving Disney Star and evision, the media and entertainment arm of e&. Evision is also a major shareholder in Starzplay, which now becomes JioHotstar’s dedicated streaming partner in the region.
Starzplay reports more than 2.3 million subscribers and has already developed a South Asian audience through its cricket coverage. Starzplay CEO Maaz Sheikh described the addition of JioHotstar as a “strategic investment,” according to TechCrunch.
Featured image credits: Seeklogo
For more stories like it, click the +Follow button at the top of this page to follow us.