Delhi techie makes bold move: Buys 'jioHotstar' domain, offers it to Reliance for Cambridge dream amid Disney-Jio merger talks
A Delhi techie bought the ‘JioHotstar’ domain before the Disney-Jio merger and offers it to Reliance in exchange for funding his Cambridge University dream.
In a shocking turn of events amidst the latest merger discussions on the deal between JioCinema-Disney+ Hotstar, a Delhi techie has come forward to make an astonishing stake. The techie, grabbing the golden chance, purchased the domain name 'JioHotstar' at the right moment when media gossip hinted that the name was going to be used for the merged streaming service after the merger. That was certainly a pretty unique offer - one to Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries.
The techie behind the purchase of the domain, however, was more than just business-minded. In a letter he sent to Reliance, he said that his motive was to fulfill a personal dream — studying in the prestigious Cambridge University. "My project has been selected for the Cambridge University Accelerate programme, and I have always wanted to study here, but could not afford it," he explained. Now, he is using this strategic purchase of the domain to fulfill this dream.
The developer note speaks about how he came to acquire the domain. The techie will read reports or any reports that can manage to reach his clutches. Early 2023, reports started coming out claiming Disney+ Hotstar had lost viewers as it lost the rights to stream IPL and rumors of selling and merging going around. Viacom18 of Reliance appears to be the possible buyer he calculated. Act on this hypothesis; he buys the domain 'JioHotstar,' and could be the new brand under Reliance's wing, much like they made of Saavn to JioSaavn.
As of now, the visitors to this domain are greeted with a bare banner that reads "JioHotstar: Best of Entertainment, Streaming Soon," and there is no official logos or branding. Yet, the techie is palpably ready to negotiate; he is offering to sell the domain over to Reliance in exchange for financial support to attend Cambridge University. He tells TOI that it would be a small expenditure for a company like Reliance but something that would be an entire lifetime's chance for him, he adds.
