Archive · 7 Oct 2026
JioHotstar Enters MENA Through STARZPLAY Partnership
JioHotstar is bringing its entertainment to the Middle East and North Africa.
It will be inside the STARZPLAY app and website, rather than in a separate app.
People can watch new shows, television programs, films and reality shows there.
Some new JioHotstar Originals will be released alongside their release in India.
The content includes Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Bangla and other languages, with audio tracks in up to 10 languages.
STARZPLAY's Plus plan costs AED 34.99 a month and includes JioHotstar entertainment.
Its AED 49.99 Max plan also includes STARZPLAY sports, including cricket.
The companies say the region is important because it has a large South Asian community and audiences interested in entertainment in different languages.
JioHotstar is expanding into the Middle East and North Africa through STARZPLAY.
The service will appear as a dedicated section in the STARZPLAY app and website, not as a standalone app.
Its catalogue includes originals, television, films and reality shows, with audio tracks in up to 10 languages.
Content spans Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Bangla and other languages, with particular emphasis on Malayalam programming.
STARZPLAY plans include Plus at AED 34.99 monthly and Max at AED 49.99, with Max also including sports such as cricket.
- Who
- JioHotstar, operated by JioStar, and streaming partner STARZPLAY.
- What
- JioHotstar is launching in MENA as a dedicated destination within STARZPLAY.
- When
- The companies announced the launch on Wednesday; one report says it follows JioHotstar's UK, Canada and Singapore launches by about a month.
- Where
- The Middle East and North Africa.
- Why
- JioStar cites the region's large South Asian diaspora and interest in entertainment across languages; STARZPLAY says the partnership extends its relationship with South Asian audiences beyond cricket.
JioStar's rationale
STARZPLAY's rationale
Purpose of the partnership
JioStar's rationale
JioStar describes MENA as a crucial next market because of its large South Asian diaspora and audience appetite for entertainment across languages.
STARZPLAY's rationale
STARZPLAY presents the deal as a way to offer viewers more valued entertainment in one destination, build on its South Asian audience through cricket, and extend that relationship beyond sports.
- Distribution
- Dedicated destination or section inside the STARZPLAY app and website.
- Plus plan
- AED 34.99 per month; includes JioHotstar's multilingual entertainment library.
- Max plan
- AED 49.99 per month; includes JioHotstar and STARZPLAY sports, including cricket.
- Languages
- Content spans Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Bangla and other languages; audio tracks are available in up to 10 languages.
- JioHotstar scale
- Reports cite more than 500 million users; one article specifies 500 million monthly active users and a library of over 300,000 hours across 19 languages.
- STARZPLAY scale
- One report says STARZPLAY has 2.3 million subscribers and more than 18 million app downloads.
- Recent expansion
- JioHotstar had recently announced or launched in the UK, Canada and Singapore; reports describe MENA as following about a month later.
