According to Media Partners Asia (MPA), advertising income on both TV and internet for the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) is expected to exceed $600 million (₹5,123 crore), a 50% increase over 2024.

This expansion has been fueled by the $8.5 billion JioStar merger, which brought Star (TV) and JioCinema (digital) under Reliance Industries Limited (RIL).

Furthermore, the unified strategy has improved audience targeting and advertiser impact across a combined TV-digital viewership of 500 million.

In 2024, fragmented distribution across channels reduced reach and profitability. JioStar was founded with the goal of integrating distribution, advertising, and content strategy, resulting in increased scale efficiencies and monetization.  Rising pay-TV access, mobile penetration, and Connected TV (CTV) usage have all helped to drive growth.

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According to MPA, JioStar will attract 3.5 million new pay-TV subscribers by 2025, including 1.5 million during the IPL, thanks to donations from cable partners and Airtel.  CTV households have increased from 25 million to 35 million year on year, and are expected to reach 50 million by December.

The season featured forty advertising categories, with fantasy gaming and food and beverage firms leading the pack.  Hotstar’s technology has improved UI/UX, resulting in better content discovery and audience engagement.

According to the research firm, JioStar has 250 million paying members in the Indian SVOD industry, with 35% coming directly from telcos and 65% through packages. The tally is expected to reach 300 million by the IPL final on May 25.

The direct ARPU is calculated at $0.45 per month.  A rich pipeline of premium cricket, Hindi and regional TV content, and foreign titles from Warner Bros. Discovery, NBCUniversal, and Paramount helps to limit postseason churn risk.  While short-form and microdramas have shown promise, long-term retention will be determined by pricing and content quality.

Despite macroeconomic risks, JioStar’s integrated strategy is producing operational efficiencies and quickening the path to EBITDA positivity, according to MPA, adding that profitability will be determined by growing beyond cricket and reducing subscriber churn. MPA estimates that JioStar will have 150 million active, engaged, paying subscribers by 2025.