In India, Hotstar is the undisputed king for streaming live sporting events which is also why it is extremely popular among Indian viewers. However, Hotstar has focused on expanding its content library in recent times and includes some notable international and local content. To cater to a wide range of audiences, Hotstar has two kinds of subscriptions: VIP Pass and Premium Subscription. In this post, I will lay out some basic differences between Hotstar VIP Pass vs Premium Subscription and how you can make the right choice.
Hotstar VIP Pass vs Premium Subscription
Live Stream Sporting Events vs International Content
The streaming service gets two kinds of viewers: ones who are purely interested in watching the live stream of major sporting events and have little interest in its content library. The second category of viewers come to Hotstar for its expansive international and local content library.
To better cater to its audience, Hotstar offers two different kinds of subscriptions in India —Hotstar VIP and Premium. The VIP subscription is for users who are purely interested in watching the live stream of various sporting events, while the Premium subscription provides one with access to Hotstar’s entire content catalog along with access to the live stream of all sporting events. You can view the entire premium content library of Hotstar over here.
Price Difference
Hotstar subscription is extremely cheap. The VIP subscription costs Rs 365/year while Premium costs Rs 999. You also have the option of subscribing to Hotstar Premium by paying Rs 299/monthly. If you look at the content offering from Hotstar, it cuts down the part where you need to subscribe to multiple sports channels on your DTH/cable connection which is a costly affair.
Hotstar is only available for users in India. You cannot use the service while out of India.
Hotstar VIP vs Premium Subscription – What You Get
Keeping sports in mind, Hotstar VIP allows one to watch all the live sporting events that are streamed by the Star Sports network in India. You can watch Live Cricket, Premier League, Formula 1 and more.
Hotstar also offers Indian movie premiers and exclusive Hotstar special. You can watch almost all content as a VIP subscriber except for American/International TV shows and movies. Selected international and Hollywood movies are also available on Hotstar VIP but in local languages and not English. Hotstar VIP also has ads albeit not much.
Hotstar Premium offers ad-free access to the latest American shows and Hollywood blockbusters. In fact, you get access to the latest American TV shows within minutes of them being streamed in the United States on Hotstar. You will also get access to Indian TV shows at 6 AM every day. Do note that you can only stream one premium content at any given time.
Free Hotstar Subscription for Jio Users
Reliance gives a free Hotstar subscription to Jio and JioFiber users. Jio users will have access to live sports, prime time episodes, and selected Indian movies for free. They will, however, not have access to premium English content.
How to Upgrade from Hotstar VIP to Hotstar Premium Subscription
If you ever feel the need to upgrade to Hotstar Premium from Hotstar VIP, you can upgrade by paying the difference. That’s a great strategy!
