JioCinema Leaves Indian Football Fans Disappointed On Opening Day Of FIFA World Cup

While football fans all over the world were eagerly awaiting the opening of the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar, Indian fans were left disappointed due to buffering issues during the live-streaming of the opening match on JioCinema.

The 2022 World Cup is being broadcast by Viacom18-owned JioCinema in the country. However, viewers complained of glitches with the app and were not happy with the broadcast on the first day.

Social media platforms were filled with complaints from viewers about the poor quality of broadcast on the JioCinema app soon after the inaugural match between host Qatar and Ecuador got underway.

We are continuously working to give you a great experience. Please upgrade your app to the latest version to enjoy #FIFAWorldCupQatar2022. Apologies for any inconvenience,” Jio Cinema tweeted responding to a viewer’s complaint on Twitter.

Jio refused to comment on Inc42’s query about the issues faced by the viewers.

In India, JioCinema is the only digital platform to broadcast the FIFA World Cup. JioCinema, a part of Reliance-owned Jio, was merged into Viacom18 earlier this year.

Viacom18’s Tryst With Sports Content

Last year, Viacom18, the joint venture between Reliance-controlled TV18 and US entertainment major Paramount Global, won the media rights for broadcasting the FIFA World Cup in India. It was the first major sports event for which Viacom18 won broadcasting rights.

To fuel the excitement among football fans, the broadcaster also launched its FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 campaign, Isse Bada Kuch Nahi, across TV and digital mediums earlier this month.

It was reported earlier that Viacom18 would move all existing sporting properties from the company’s video-on-demand service VOOT to JioCinema, starting with FIFA World Cup 2022.

“Viacom18 Sports’ multi-platform presentation of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 will be immersive, personalised and offer viewers exclusive experiences on JioCinema,” Anil Jayaraj, CEO of Viacom18 Sports, said earlier.

Viacom18 will reportedly move other sporting properties such as football leagues LaLiga (Spanish), Ligue 1 (French) and Serie A (Italy),NBA, ATP Masters (Tennis) and Abu Dhabi T10 (cricket) also to JioCinema.

Earlier this year, Viacom18 also bagged the digital rights for the Indian Premier League (IPL), the marquee cricket tournament. However, a decision about whether it would be live-streamed on VOOT or JioCinema has not been taken yet.

Until now, sports broadcasting in India was dominated by Star India and Sony Pictures Networks India, which helped their respective OTT apps Disney+Hotstar and SonyLIV in acquiring new users. However, the scenario has changed now with Viacom18 aggressively eyeing growth in the segment.

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