iWorld
JioHotstar brings HBO Max to India in exclusive Warner Bros. tie-up
Hit shows and global franchises arrive as platform sharpens streaming edge
MUMBAI: JioHotstar has expanded its partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery to bring HBO Max to India, making it the exclusive home for the global streaming platform in the country.
The HBO Max hub, now live on JioHotstar, offers a wide catalogue spanning HBO, Max Originals, Warner Bros. Pictures, Warner Bros. Television and DC Studios, creating a unified destination for premium international content.
The launch gives Indian audiences access to some of the most anticipated titles of 2026, including new seasons of Euphoria and House of the Dragon, alongside an upcoming Harry Potter series. Popular titles already available include The Last of Us, Succession, Game of Thrones and The White Lotus.
In a first for the platform, subscribers can also stream iconic series such as Friends and The Big Bang Theory, along with other fan favourites like The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural and The Flash.
Commenting on the launch, JioHotstar CEO entertainment Kevin Vaz said, “This marks a defining moment in how premium global content is accessed and experienced in India.” He added that the integration brings together scale, curation and accessibility to deliver a more immersive viewing experience.
Echoing the sentiment, Warner Bros. Discovery president Apac James Gibbons said, “India is one of the most vibrant streaming markets globally, and in JioHotstar, we have a partner with unmatched scale and a deep understanding of local audiences.” He noted that the move strengthens the reach of the company’s global franchises in the country.
The HBO Max hub will sit alongside JioHotstar’s existing content library, with subscription add-on plans starting at Rs 49 per month, offering viewers broader access to international programming.
With streaming competition heating up, this tie-up signals a clear push by JioHotstar to double down on premium global content and cement its position as a one-stop destination for entertainment in India.
e-commerce
Visa report tracks rise of India’s affluent, experience-led spending
Affluent base doubles to 130 lakh, travel 58 per cent of elite spends.
MUMBAI: In India’s new luxury playbook, it’s less about owning more and more about living better. A new whitepaper by Visa Consulting and Analytics (VCA) maps a decisive shift in India’s affluent economy, where spending is becoming more intentional, experience-led, and closely tied to personal identity rather than pure income growth.
Titled India’s Affluent Economy 2025–2026, the report draws on a Visa-commissioned Yougov study and VisaNet data across travel, dining, retail and lifestyle categories. The headline number is hard to miss: individuals earning over Rs 10 lakh annually have nearly doubled from 69 lakh to 130 lakh, significantly expanding the country’s discretionary spending base.
But it’s not just about scale, it’s about behaviour. As consumers move up the affluence ladder, discretionary categories are taking a larger share of credit card spends, positioning cards as key enablers of premium, lifestyle-driven consumption.
The geography of wealth is shifting too. Affluence is no longer confined to metros such as Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru, with cities like Ahmedabad, Surat, Jaipur and Lucknow increasingly mirroring metro consumption patterns.
The report highlights a clear pivot from ownership to access. More than 50 per cent of affluent consumers now use cards for elite memberships, while 7 in 10 are drawn to limited-edition drops and curated collections. Increasingly, luxury is defined by seamless access be it concierge-led travel or curated dining where time saved is as valuable as money spent.
Spending patterns reinforce this shift. Among the ultra-elite, travel accounts for 58 per cent of discretionary spends, far outpacing retail and luxury combined at 28 per cent. Cross-border spending penetration stands at 63 per cent, signalling a growing global outlook among India’s affluent.
Closer home, indulgence is becoming routine. Nearly 4 in 5 affluent consumers dine at premium establishments at least three times a year, while 1 in 4 visit luxury venues more than five times annually. Dining spends are also climbing, with Rs 20,000 emerging as a new entry-level benchmark per experience and Rs 50,000 marking premium territory.
Retail, meanwhile, is becoming more selective. Three in four affluent consumers make a high-end purchase at least once a quarter, while one in four shops premium every two weeks. Luxury retail intensity is also rising, with 2 in 5 consumers spending over Rs 5 lakh annually, and a smaller but significant segment exceeding Rs 10 lakh.
Technology and wellness are carving out new roles in this ecosystem. High-end gadgets now see average spends of Rs 60,000 or more per purchase, while ultra-elite consumers are eight times more likely to visit spas and show five times higher engagement with cosmetic stores than non-affluent groups.
The broader takeaway is structural. Affluent consumers are no longer buying products, they are buying ecosystems. Integrated experiences across travel, dining, wellness and payments are becoming central to how this segment lives and spends.
As India’s affluent base expands beyond metros and aligns more closely with global consumption patterns, the real opportunity lies not just in size, but in speed. For brands, the message is clear: relevance will be defined by how early and how seamlessly, they plug into this evolving lifestyle economy.
