JioHotstar bags the digital rights of India-England series

JioHotstar will be streaming the India-England Test series. © Getty
JioHotstar has bagged the exclusive digital rights of the upcoming series between England and India. Cricbuzz can confirm that the premier sports broadcast network in the country has completed a digital deal with Sony Entertainment Network, or Culver Max Entertainment Private Limited. The five-Test marquee series between England and India, starting on June 20 at Leeds, will now be available on JioHotstar too.

Negotiations between the networks have been underway for the past month, and an agreement is believed to have been reached in the last 24 hours. Sony has agreed to sub-license the digital streaming of the matches but has retained the linear rights of the series, which will now be shown on the Sony Sports network.

An immediate response from either party, Sony or Jio Star, could not be obtained at the time of writing but it has been learned that an announcement to the effect is expected later in the day. The four other Tests to be played in England will be in Birmingham (from July 2), Lord's (from July 10), Manchester (July 23) and finally at the Oval (from July 31).

It is understood that the current arrangement between Sony and Jio Star extends to next year's white ball series as well. India are to play three ODIs and five Twenty20 Internationals in England in 2026 summer and JioStar will broadcast those eight games as well.

Sony secured the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) rights last year in an eight-year deal that runs through 2031, giving it exclusive broadcast rights to all England cricket properties in India. In the current arrangement between Jio, Star, and Sony, the ECB is also understood to have played a key role in facilitating the agreement.