Regional cricket consumption rises as JioStar launches ‘Beyond Boundaries’

JioStar has launched ‘Beyond Boundaries’, an initiative aimed at connecting advertisers with regional-language cricket audiences through live feeds and pre- and post-programming partnerships. The company highlighted rising regional-language consumption and strong digital engagement during TATA IPL 2026

Hyderabad: JioStar has announced the launch of ‘Beyond Boundaries’, an initiative aimed at bringing advertisers closer to the growing and highly engaged regional-language cricket audience through live cricket feeds and pre- and post-programming (PPL) partnerships.

Cricket consumption in regional languages is becoming an increasingly significant part of how audiences experience the game, with strong engagement on digital platforms.

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During TATA IPL 2026, the reach of the Kannada feed increased by 30 per cent year-on-year, while Telugu and Tamil feeds recorded upticks of 23 per cent and 12 per cent, respectively, on JioHotstar. The digital watch-time share of Telugu recorded the highest growth at 30 per cent among the three markets, followed by Kannada and Tamil.

The growth reflects the continued evolution of cricket consumption beyond Hindi and English, with audiences increasingly engaging with the tournament through feeds that combine the scale of live sport with language and cultural relevance.

The 2026 season also witnessed strong growth across digital platforms, with Connected TV reach growing by 22 per cent, underscoring the rapid convergence of television-scale reach with digital precision for advertisers. Digital video views reached 25 billion, marking an 8 per cent year-on-year increase. Regional-language watch-time share rose by 33 per cent on digital platforms.

Anup Govindan, Head of Sales – Sports, JioStar, said: “The growth of regional-language cricket reflects how cricket consumption in India is evolving. Audiences aren’t just watching in greater numbers; they’re choosing to experience the game in languages and environments that feel familiar to them. For brands, that matters because it opens up a deeper way to participate in cricket across markets.

“The real opportunity is in understanding what makes each audience and market distinct and building around those nuances rather than viewing regional consumption purely through the lens of scale.”