Disney+ launches in India via Hotstar

Disney+ content is now available to Indian users via Hotstar. Here’s everything you need to know so far.

The Child, better known to audiences as “Baby Yoda”, is seen in an undated still image from the Disney+ series "The Mandalorian" provided to Reuters February 5, 2020. Disney+ is now available in India. (REUTERS)

Disney+ content is now available to Indian users via Hotstar. A quick search on Hotstar showed all popular Disney+ series such as The Mandalorian and The World According to Jeff Goldblum are now available on the app. The catalogue also includes old Disney content.

Disney+ launched in November last year amid a growing competition in the OTT space dominated by the likes of Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. Disney+ had a big start as it raced to 10 million subscribers on the launch day itself. The streaming platform has gradually rolled out to more markets over the last few months.

For India, it was supposed to be part of Disney-owned Hotstar. Ahead of the Disney+ arrival, Hotstar had introduced a new logo. On iOS, the rebranded logo also mentioned "Disney+ hotstar". The new logo is now available on Android as part of today's update.

Interestingly enough, Robert Iger, then chairman and CEO of Disney, had given March 29 as the official launch date of Disney+ in India. Hotstar had also been informing users that the Disney+ content will be available later this month.

 

Hi! Disney+ will be coming to Hotstar on 29th March. More details will be shared in the coming weeks. Stay tuned.

— Hotstar (@hotstartweets) March 9, 2020

Based on our early usage, Disney+ content is likely to be available to Hotstar premium customers. Hotstar Premium subscription is available for ₹999 per annum or ₹299 per month. The availability of Disney+ in India was first reported by MediaNama.

 

Disney+ is live on Hotstar. The app has been updated with new logo, splash screen and content. The update also mentioned a Disney+ tab but nowhere to be seen. #DisneyPlus #Hotstar #Disney #India @disneyplus @hotstar_helps @hotstartweets @verge @TechCrunch pic.twitter.com/d9lLqwi1x8

— Praveen Kumar (@StoriesWPraveen) March 11, 2020

Hotstar users can get started with the updated interface and new content by updating their app on the Play Store.

"This launch is one of our biggest yet! We are very proud to bring you the worlds best stories from the best story tellers at Disney, Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars and Nat Geo. Check out all the stories under the Disney+ tab. And we've dubbed the best of them in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu," says the changelog on the Google Play Store.

"Lastly, don't forget to check out our Kids mode, where Kids can see content only suitable for them! We have more goodies lined up in the coming releases, turn your auto update on to make sure you don't miss a thing!" it added.

We have reached out to Hotstar for more information on the new update. Stay tuned.