HBO Max is coming to India via an exclusive JioHotstar deal

Indian streaming service JioHotstar, owned by Reliance Industries, said on Wednesday that it has expanded its partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery to bring HBO Max to India.

HBO Max will be available to JioHotstar subscribers as an add-on starting at INR 49 (about US$0.50) per month, and will contain content from HBO, Max Originals, and Warner Bros. Pictures and Warner Bros. Television and DC Studios. The price is significantly lower than HBO Max’s standalone base tier in the US, which costs $10.99 per month.

JioHotstar confirmed to TechCrunch that users’ existing subscription plans will impact the experience, suggesting that lower-priced plans may include ads. The streaming service starts at INR 79 (~$0.85) per month for mobile users with ads, and goes up to INR 299 (~$3.2) per month for the ad-free premium plan.

India’s live streaming market has expanded rapidly, with total monthly active users (MAUs) reaching around 1.45 billion, thanks to affordable mobile data plans and increasing smartphone adoption, according to a new report. Latest report By the brokerage firm CLSA. YouTube led the market with 772 million MAU, and JioHotstar came in second with about 390 million MAU, the report said.

However, penetration of streaming services remains relatively low outside of major cities, with usage hovering around 23% to 27% in Tier 2 markets and 7% to 8% in Tier 3 cities, according to recent estimates from Third Bridge. The consulting firm, which collects insights from industry executives, said most users access streaming services through bundled offerings rather than direct subscriptions.

The HBO Max hub will offer a mix of new and existing titles to Indian audiences, including the third season of the series trancethe next batch of Dragon HouseDC Studios Lanternsand the next Harry Potter series, and more.