JioStar began the 2026-27 financial year with a sharp rise in revenue and digital consumption, powered by the Indian Premier League, subscription growth and improved advertising monetisation across its streaming business.
Operating revenues have gone up by 14% year-over-year to ₹10,946 crore for the quarter ended June 2026. Operating EBITDA increased 31% to ₹933 crore, increasing much more quickly than the operating revenue.
Profit before tax climbed 14% to ₹667 crore. Total EBITDA stood at ₹1,049 crore, while the EBITDA margin eased to 9.6% from 10.6% in the corresponding quarter. The decline in the overall margin was linked to lower investment income rather than a slowdown in the core media business.
The quarter also highlighted the growing importance of JioHotstar within JioStar’s wider television and entertainment portfolio.
IPL pushes JioHotstar audience to new highs
JioHotstar recorded an average of 530 million monthly active users during the quarter, up 15% from a year earlier.
The IPL remained its most powerful audience acquisition property. Nearly 700 million users accessed the platform during the tournament, representing growth of 12% over the previous season.
JioStar said IPL 2026 generated 7% higher overall reach across television and digital platforms than the 2025 edition. Connected TV viewing during the tournament increased 19% year on year, reflecting the continued rise of large-screen streaming for live sport.
These numbers show that the IPL is doing more than delivering a temporary spike in match-day traffic. It is bringing users into the platform at scale, after which JioStar can direct them towards films, television programmes, originals and shorter entertainment formats.
Women’s cricket also contributed to the increase in digital viewing. The Women’s T20 World Cup delivered 155% growth in digital viewership compared with the previous edition. Connected TV consumption for the tournament increased 208%.
JioStar expands beyond long-form streaming
While live cricket remained the quarter’s biggest attraction, JioStar also reported rising engagement across its entertainment catalogue.
Digital entertainment watch time grew 16% year on year. The company also maintained a 34% share of India’s linear television market.
Dhurandhar 2 was seen the most by viewers among all movies available on JioHotstar, and Laughter Chefs had a better viewing experience in their current season compared to the previous seasons. The opening performance of Pritam and Pedro was the best in the year 2026.
The performance suggests that users acquired through major sporting events are continuing to consume entertainment after the tournaments end, an important factor for subscription retention and advertising revenue.
JioStar is also investing in shorter formats as competition for mobile viewing time intensifies.
Tadka, JioHotstar’s short-form content section, crossed 100 million active users within roughly two months of its launch. The service offered more than 200 titles during the period.
The company also released its first internally produced micro-drama created using artificial intelligence, Game On! The 4000 Cr Empire. The project signals JioStar’s interest in using generative technology not only for content discovery, but also for selected forms of production.
AI becomes part of the discovery experience
JioStar reported increased adoption of its conversational, AI-powered discovery feature, which is designed to help users find programmes through more natural searches.
Content discovery is now a very significant issue in big streaming platforms. Having larger content libraries will allow viewers to have more choices; however, at the same time, it may cause confusion among users, and therefore better recommendations along with conversational searching will decrease friction while boosting user engagement.
For JioStar, the combination of personalised discovery, live sports and short-form entertainment creates several possible entry points for different audience groups. A user arriving for an IPL match may later watch a film, a television episode or a short-format series without leaving the platform.
Revenue grows despite advertising pressure
The financial improvement came during a difficult period for parts of the advertising industry.
JioStar said advertising demand was affected by restrictions on real-money gaming promotions and wider market uncertainty linked to geopolitical developments. Linear television also continued to face pressure as advertisers shifted more spending towards digital media.
Growth in subscriptions, digital entertainment advertising and Connected TV monetisation helped offset those challenges. Advertising revenue across television and digital entertainment increased during the quarter, supported by stronger digital performance.
The 31% rise in operating EBITDA, compared with the 14% increase in operating revenue, indicates that the additional income translated into a proportionately larger improvement in operating earnings.
Sports, technology and commerce shape the next phase
JioStar’s strategy is increasingly built around using premium content to support several sources of revenue rather than relying on conventional television advertising alone.
Alongside subscriptions and digital advertising, the company is exploring commerce integrations linked to live viewing. During the IPL, a partnership with Swiggy allowed viewers to move from watching content to making purchases. JioStar presented the campaign as an example of how live entertainment can generate transactions without requiring users to leave the viewing environment.
The June-quarter performance shows how the combined television and digital operation is using cricket to build reach while relying on entertainment, personalisation and short-form content to maintain engagement.
With ₹10,946 crore in operating revenue, 530 million average monthly users and nearly 700 million IPL viewers, JioStar entered FY27 with considerable audience scale. Its next challenge will be converting that reach into sustained subscription growth, stronger advertising yields and repeat consumption outside the cricket calendar.
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