- More than 80 million viewers for IPL to date; on track to exceed the 100 million target for the tournament
- Tournament reach double’s that of last year’s tournament at the same stage
- Total watch time up 275% from 2014
Mumbai, 26 May 2016: With more than 80 million viewers for the Vivo Indian Premier League 2016 to date, Hotstar, India’s largest premium streaming platform, is on course to cross the 100 million mark in this year’s edition. The tournament’s reach on Hotstar has doubled in comparison to last year at the same stage and the total watch time is up 275% from 2014, with 95% of all consumption coming from the top 10 cities.
Ajit Mohan, CEO – Hotstar, says, “We are delighted at the growth we have seen on the IPL viewership on Hotstar over the last two tournaments. Hotstar has become the primary screen for IPL for the urban affluent and the young cricket fans. With more than double the reach of last year, we are well set to exceed the 100 million target we had set for ourselves for this year.”
Ever since its launch, Hotstar has become the preferred destination and a habit amongst the millennial in large cities where users have access to broadband data; in fact, when cricket is on, it has become the primary screen for the urban young.
Hotstar has invested heavily in creating a world-class streaming experience. Users on Hotstar have access to live scores and match data integrated into the experience. The persistent efforts to reinvent consistently and stay fresh to maintain engagement levels among the 18 to 24 year has been the driving force behind the ever-rising popularity of the platform.
Hotstar made the Vivo IPL 2016 an even more enjoyable experience for its viewers, with a complete content package including pre and post show programming with the best anchors and commentators in the country. Two wrap around shows – Cricket Live and One Tip One Hand, along with The Boundary Riders (a Video Blog) have been popular programming additions, along with Hotstar’s presence at the IPL Fan Park.
Cricket Live
Cricket Live is a one-hour exclusive show hosted by Jatin Sapru featuring the expert panel of David Hussey, Bret Lee, Mohd. Kaif, Aakash Chopra, Deep Das Gupta and Shoaib Akthar. The show is a detailed analysis on the games played in the Vivo IPL 2016 and focused purely on the cricket part of the game and not entertainment. It also brings alive all the inside scoops for all the franchises, covering their strategy, behind-the-scenes action and what’s happening in the camp, including player secrets and more.
One Tip One Hand
One Tip One Hand hosted by Cyrus Sahukar and Varun Thakur, is a weekly analysis of the Vivo IPL 2016 games, and features on Hotstar every Saturday. The show analyses the game with a bit of banter and humour along with a star-studded line-up of experts.
The Boundary Riders
Three Vloggers scour the length and breadth of the nation in search of stories that introduce fans to the unseen world around the Vivo IPL 2016 calendar and match cities. This video log (Vlog) serves as a platform for the Vloggers to share their stories. As a collective of stories, this blog demonstrates how the Vivo IPL 2016 touches and affects the lives of millions of Indians every year in a positive and uplifting way. The Vloggers also engage the players in fun activities together with pop quiz where the cricketer questions the Vlogger, and sometimes also lets the Vlogger experience a batting or bowling with the player and much more.
About Hotstar:
Hotstar is India’s largest premium streaming platform with more than 85,000 hours of drama and movies in 8 languages, and coverage of every major global sporting event. Launched in February 2015, it has been downloaded by more than 65 million users and has attracted followers on the back of a highly evolved video streaming technology and high attention to quality of experience across devices and platforms.
Soon after its launch, Hotstar raced on to become one of the fastest adopted new apps anywhere in the world. Hotstar offers most of its content free of cost and recently introduced a pay wall that provides some of the most popular international TV series and films for a monthly subscription fee of Rs. 199.
Hotstar is available on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store for mobile and tablet applications and can be accessed at www.hotstar.com