HBO Max has debuted in India via an exclusive deal with JioHotstar, a streaming service formed from Reliance Industries’ $8.5 billion merger with Disney’s Indian operations. This agreement introduces a dedicated HBO Max hub for JioHotstar’s over 100 million paid subscribers, available as an add-on starting at ₹49 per month, about 50 US cents, making it one of the cheapest options for accessing HBO’s content globally.
The hub features content from HBO, Max Originals, Warner Bros. Pictures, Warner Bros. Television, and DC Studios. Initial offerings include Euphoria Season 3 and the upcoming House of the Dragon Season 3, along with a new HBO Original series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. The movie library includes the Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings series, as well as DC Universe titles.
Two previously unavailable shows also join the lineup. Friends and The Big Bang Theory return to Indian streaming after past licensing deals ended, along with The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural, and The Flash. In a market where these sitcoms have significant cultural impact, their inclusion is a strategic decision.
Why India, why now
“India is one of the most dynamic streaming markets globally, and in JioHotstar, we have a partner with unparalleled scale and insight into local audiences,” said James Gibbons, president of Asia-Pacific at Warner Bros. Discovery. The strategic reasoning is simple: India is a market Warner Bros. Discovery couldn’t penetrate on its own, and JioHotstar already dominates it.
JioHotstar has about 390 million monthly active users and controls around 85 percent of India’s streaming market following the Reliance-Disney merger completed in early 2025. This platform combines what were JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar into one service with cricket rights, including the Indian Premier League and ICC tournaments, unmatched by competitors. Netflix, although investing heavily in Hindi and regional content, has 92 million monthly users in India. Amazon Prime Video has 67 million and is losing market share, decreasing by 17 percent over the past year.
For Warner Bros. Discovery, the JioHotstar partnership addresses an issue that persisted since the WarnerMedia-Discovery merger in 2022. HBO content was originally licensed to Disney+ Hotstar in India under a deal expiring in March 2023. When Disney chose not to renew, the content moved to JioCinema. Now, with JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar combined into JioHotstar, Warner Bros. Discovery is cementing that relationship through a branded hub instead of a mere licensing setup.
The economics of 50 cents
The ₹49 monthly pricing, covering both the HBO Max hub and JioHotstar’s complete international content library, highlights the tough economics of Indian streaming. JioHotstar’s basic plans begin at ₹149 for three months with ads, or ₹299 monthly for an ad-free option. The HBO Max add-on is priced to be beneath the consideration threshold: affordable enough for current subscribers to add without much deliberation, yet indicating a premium standing compared to the base content.
India’s over-the-top revenue is forecasted to hit $4.5 billion by 2026, with the media and entertainment sector seeing a 9 percent annual growth, reaching ₹2.78 trillion by 2025. Last year, digital media overtook television as the biggest segment in the industry. However, revenue per user figures remain much less than Western markets. Netflix leads in subscription video-on-demand revenue in India despite having far fewer users than JioHotstar