JioCinema Ropes In YouTube India Head Ishan Chatterjee As CBO

Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries’ video streaming platform JioCinema has roped in YouTube executive Ishan Chatterjee as its new chief business officer as part of the company’s efforts to push its digital offerings in the rapidly growing streaming space.

“Chatterjee’s appointment reflects JioCinema’s commitment to accelerate its transformation into a tech-enabled company, delivering cutting-edge, seamless digital experiences to its rapidly expanding user base,” the company said in a statement.

As the newly appointed chief business officer at JioCinema, Chatterjee will oversee the platform’s overall monetisation, focusing on driving revenue growth across sports and entertainment, with a particular emphasis on sports and SMB revenue streams.

Prior to joining JioCinema, Chatterjee served as managing director of YouTube India, where he was instrumental in shaping the platform’s strategy and growth. With over two decades of experience, including 13 years at Google and roles at McKinsey and Hindustan Unilever, he brings a wealth of expertise.

Chatterjee is an alumnus of The Wharton School and St. Stephen’s College, Delhi. In his new role, he will collaborate closely with JioCinema’s leadership team, working alongside Kiran Mani, CEO for digital ventures at Viacom18.

The appointment comes at a time when reports indicate that Reliance Industries is mulling to have only one OTT platform, JioCinema, after it wraps up merger with Star and Viacom18.

The Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate plans to merge Disney+ Hotstar with JioCinema after getting regulatory nod for the proposed merger, to cut costs and expand JioCinema’s content offerings.

In its annual report 2023-24, Reliance Industries said that JioCinema had 225 Mn average monthly active users while Disney+ Hotstar had 333 Mn. Meanwhile, data from Google Play Store showed that Disney+ Hotstar had more than 500 Mn downloads, significantly higher than JioCinema’s 100 Mn.

In February this year, Reliance Industries and The Walt Disney Company inked a deal to set up a joint venture (JV) that would combine the businesses of Viacom18 and Star India Private Limited.

At the time, it was reported that the merged entity will host over 100 TV channels and streaming platforms – Disney+ Hotstar and JioCinema. It will also exclusively wield the rights to distribute Disney’s content in India as well Viacom18-owned sports content.

Additionally, RIL said it would invest INR 11,500 Cr in the JV to fuel its growth.