Disney‑owned JioHotstar has committed $444 million—roughly ₹4,000 crore—to acquire and produce South Indian content over the next five years. The capital will be used to purchase existing films and series in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam, as well as to develop new original programming aimed at the region’s large and growing audience.
South Indian content already drives about 70 % more watch time on JioHotstar than other regions, and the platform’s market share in India sits between 26 % and 29 %. By deepening its library in the south, JioHotstar seeks to cement its position as the leading streaming destination in the country and to capture a segment that is less price‑sensitive and more loyal than the Hindi‑language market.
The investment comes at a time when Disney’s India joint venture with Reliance is reporting a projected full‑year loss of roughly $300 million, and Star India’s revenue has fallen sharply. Allocating capital to regional content is a strategic countermeasure to offset these headwinds and to leverage the high engagement that South Indian viewers bring to the platform.
The $444 million will be deployed in a mix of acquisitions and original productions, with a target of adding 1,500 hours of new South Indian programming in the next 12 months. The plan includes both the purchase of finished titles and the development of fresh stories that can be distributed across JioHotstar’s subscription and advertising‑based models.
Krishnan Kutty, head of cluster entertainment (South), said the southern region is “a strong growth engine” that “outperforms the rest of the country in subscription depth, retention, and connected‑TV adoption.” Chief marketing officer Sushant Sreeram added that the investment will “nurture creators, strengthen the production ecosystem, and build a pipeline of stories ready for India and the world.”
By expanding its South Indian library, JioHotstar aims to double its subscriber base, differentiate itself from competitors such as Amazon Prime Video and Netflix, and create a sustainable creative ecosystem that feeds both local and global audiences. The move signals Disney’s confidence that regional content will drive long‑term growth in India’s largest entertainment market.
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