Disney+Hotstar Apes Netflix, To Float Policy On Password Sharing

After Netflix’s crackdown on password sharing, streaming major Disney+Hotstar, too, is planning to bring a new policy that will allow its premium users to log in from only four devices, news agency Reuters reported.

Although the Disney+Hotstar website currently says that the “number of devices that can be logged in” is four, a premium account of the streaming service still allows as many as 10 devices to log in at the same time.

Disney+ Hotstar plans to roll out the implementation later this year and it has already tested the enforcement of the policy internally.

With the new restriction, many users will be incentivised to buy their own subscriptions with new restrictions in place, a source told Reuters.

Besides premium subscription, Disney+Hotstar is also planning to apply restrictions to its cheaper plan, which will limit usage across two devices.

Earlier this month, reports surfaced that Disney, which owns Disney+Hotstar, is reportedly exploring strategic options for its Star India business, including a joint venture or a sale.

Disney acquired the entertainment assets of 21st Century Fox in 2019 for $71.3 Bn. Post the acquisition, Star India came under the aegis of Disney, and Hotstar was rebranded as Disney+Hotstar.

For a long time, Hotstar was the undisputed leader in India’s streaming industry. However, things started changing after Reliance-backed JioCinema started taking aggressive bets in the OTT space.

Last year, Disney lost the Indian Premier League’s (IPL’s) digital streaming rights to Viacom18 for the 2023-27 period. Since then, Disney+Hotstar’s leadership position has been at stake with Jio’s aggressive OTT push.

In its Q2 FY23 earnings report, Walt Disney said that Disney+Hotstar’s subscribers stood at 52.9 Mn in the February-April 2023 quarter, down 4.6 Mn subscribers sequentially.

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