JioHotstar Partners with Nielsen for Digital Measurement of IPL Viewership

Highlights

• JioHotstar partners with Nielsen to track and analyse the digital viewership of the IPL.
• The collaboration will start with the 2025 IPL season.
• It will later expand to other digital properties on JioHotstar.
• The partnership will offer advertisers transparent and third-party verified insights.
• Ahead of IPL 2025, JioStar merged Disney+ Hotstar and JioCinema into JioHotstar with new affordable tariff plans.

The streaming platform JioHotstar under the Reliance-Disney joint venture (JioStar) has teamed up with market research giant Nielsen to track and analyse digital viewership of the Indian Premier League (IPL). This is a major move as it’s the first time a third-party agency will provide independent digital audience data for IPL, similar to how the Broadcast Audience Research Council of India (BARC) tracks television viewership.

The President (Commercial) of Asia at Nielsen Arnaud Frade said, “With over 100 years of expertise in audience measurement, Nielsen is committed to supporting the evolving needs of advertisers with data-driven insights.”

The collaboration will begin with the 2025 IPL season and will later expand to other digital properties on JioHotstar. This initiative is expected to continue for a long period since JioStar holds IPL media rights until 2027.

Advertisers until now had to rely on either OTT platform-provided data or their own internal analysis for digital viewership metrics. This partnership aims to fill the gap and offer advertisers transparent and also third-party verified insights into IPL’s digital audience.

To track and analyse viewership, Nielsen will use tools like Nielsen ONE Ads (its Digital Ad Ratings (DAR) system) and newly developed volumetric and reach analysis. Advertisers will be able to access data through the Nielsen One dashboard, which will provide insights into:

• Impressions
• Clicks
• Campaign reach
• On-target reach

“This partnership will redefine how advertising on digital/OTT is measured and delivered across India’s most iconic entertainment and sports properties,” said Ishan Chatterjee, Chief Business Officer of Sports Revenue SMB & Creator JioStar.

Ahead of IPL 2025, JioStar merged its two streaming platforms Disney+ Hotstar and JioCinema into one, JioHotstar. Existing subscribers of both platforms can now seamlessly transition with new affordable tariff plans being introduced to boost viewership.

IPL is one of the biggest sports and entertainment events in India. In 2024, IPL’s TV broadcast on Star Sports reached over 550 million viewers, while its digital reach on JioCinema was estimated to be 550–600 million.

FAQs

Q1. What is the purpose of the partnership between JioHotstar and Nielsen?

Answer. JioHotstar has teamed up with Nielsen to track and analyze digital viewership of the IPL, making it the first time a third-party agency will provide independent digital audience data for the IPL.

Q2. When will the collaboration between JioHotstar and Nielsen begin?

Answer. The collaboration will begin with the 2025 IPL season and will later expand to other digital properties on JioHotstar.

Q3. What changes have JioStar made ahead of IPL 2025?

Answer. Ahead of IPL 2025, JioStar merged its two streaming platforms, Disney+ Hotstar and JioCinema, into JioHotstar, with new affordable tariff plans being introduced to boost viewership.

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