But the economics of streaming are wildly different in South Asia. In the U.S., Disney Plus costs three and a half times as much, and hosts a fraction of the content. It even has the entire filmography of Iranian director Jafar Panahi, whose socially minded art films were made under house arrest and are banned by the Iranian government - a far cry from Disney’s sanitized, family-friendly image. For 1,499 rupees ($19.59) per year, Hotstar’s Premium tier grants you access to not only the Marvel, Star Wars, and Pixar libraries - most of which were already available before it was Disney Plus - but also to HBO, Showtime, news broadcasts, live cricket matches (also available through a free tier), and a whole host of not just Bollywood movies, but regional-language Indian films. What separates Disney Plus Hotstar from regular old Disney Plus? Besides a mostly white UI now streaked by hints of Disney blue, the platform’s content runs far beyond the familiar.
Most of those 8 million subscribers were already signed up to the 21st Century Fox-owned film and TV streaming service before it merged with Disney Plus to become an even bigger streaming behemoth.
Of the nation’s 560 million internet users, 8 million are now paid subscribers to “Disney Plus Hotstar,” as Disney recently boasted, thanks in large part to the acquisition of Hotstar. Unlike in North America, the anticipated April 3 arrival of Disney Plus in India was more of a rebranding than a launch.
0 kommentar(er)
