JioCinema and Krafton India have collaborated to live stream the Battlegrounds Mobile India Series (BGIS) 2023. The event will feature “The Grind” phase from August 17th to 20th followed by the finals from October 12th to 14th. With a prize pool of INR 2 Crore, the tournament has attracted, over 2,000 teams highlighting the growing popularity of esports in India. Despite being banned for nine months Kraftons BGMI has made a comeback in India with the support of a $150 million investment commitment. JioCinema is expanding its offerings beyond OTT streaming by showcasing esports, alongside premier sporting events.
JioCinema has teamed up with Krafton India, a game development platform to livestream the Battlegrounds Mobile India Series (BGIS). The final phase of BGIS 2023 known as “The Grind ” is scheduled to commence on August 17 and conclude on August 20. This will be followed by the round of BGIS 2023 streaming starting from August 31 onwards. Viewers can catch the finals of the tournament streaming, on JioCinema from October 12 to 14.
Krafton has reported a registration count of over 2,000 teams for the tournament. These teams will compete for a prize pool of INR 2 Crore with INR 75 Lakhs for grabs for the winning team. BGIS will offer commentary in both Hindi and English throughout all matches well as during the grand finale.
Expressing his thoughts on this collaboration Hursh Shrivastava, Head of Strategy, Partnerships and Acquisitions at Viacom18 Sports stated, “Esports has gone beyond its niche beginnings and has emerged as an experience with a rise in popularity. We are thrilled to bring an exhilarating experience to an audience across the country through BGIS 2023.”
In May Korean developer Krafton announced the awaited return of its popular game Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) after facing a nine-month ban, in India during 2022. BGMI was temporarily removed from Google and Apple stores following a government order issued in July of that year.
In its launch, in 2017 the game quickly gained popularity in India with 100 million registered users within just one year.
Despite facing some challenges in India, Krafton the company behind PUBG Mobile and BGMI has been actively working to expand its presence in the country. Recently they announced their commitment to invest $150 million over two to three years in gaming and entertainment startups.
Meanwhile, Viacom18s JioCinema has been diversifying its offerings. Now venturing into esports streaming well. They have successfully streamed sporting events like FIFA World Cup and Indian Premier League (IPL) over the year establishing themselves as a strong player in Indias, over the top (OTT) ecosystem.
