The ongoing controversy surrounding the JioHotstar.com domain has taken an unexpected turn. Originally secured by an anonymous app developer in Delhi prior to the merger of JioCinema and Hotstar, the domain appears to have been sold to two young siblings in Dubai.
Background of the Domain Purchase
The situation began when a letter appeared on JioHotstar.com, which many considered the obvious choice for a unified streaming platform following the merger between Disney+ Hotstar and Viacom18, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries. The Delhi-based app developer had acquired the domain in 2023, anticipating this merger.
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Developer’s Request and Legal Challenges
In his correspondence, the developer requested Reliance to pay a little over Rs 1 crore for the domain, explaining that he needed the funds to pursue an executive MBA at Cambridge University in the UK. However, he later mentioned that a Reliance executive contacted him, rejecting his offer. Instead, he claims Reliance is taking legal action against him for trademark infringement.
New Owners of the Domain
Recently, visitors to JioHotstar.com were greeted with a new landing page featuring the faces of Jainam and Jivika, two Dubai-based siblings. Jainam is 13 years old, while his sister is 10 years old, according to their website, jainamjivikafuntime.com. In their letter, they expressed that they purchased the JioHotstar domain to “support a young software developer from Delhi.”
