Mentor Assignment | Jio - CareYou Campaign

Jio Cinema

About Jio Cinema

Unless you're living under a rock, you know what Jio and Jio Cinema is.

Jio Cinema is a free to download app offering a vast library of exclusive shows like Game of Thrones, Succession, Asur, and the infamous Bigg Boss (no matter how much I may hate it, its popularity is undeniable). It also streams live sports events like the FIFA World Cup, Olympics & the baap of all sporting events - the IPL that too in over 8 regional languages (trivia - Bhojpuri is my favorite).

It was launched in 2016 since then it has garnered around 600 millions of downloads (both on android and ios appstore), ranking as the 10th most downloaded app and the 3rd largest OTT platform in India.

By leveraging free app download & high-speed internet thanks to Jio, the app has democratized entertainment access, offering both ad-supported (AVOD) and subscription-based (SVOD) models to suit various user preferences.

Structure of the Assignment

Understand current strategy
Pick a metric
Pick a sub-lever: I have picked Partnership under Acquisition for paid-users only
Create a strategy focusing on that particular metric: CareYou Campaign
Expand and make it like a working document.

Current Landscape

With its extensive partnerships, Jio Cinema now offers a diverse content library, including everything from Colors TV through Viacom18, content from Paramount Global (which includes Disney and Fox), and Voot. Additionally, a content agreement with Warner Bros brings HBO and Max original productions to the platform. Moreover the app is accessible across a wide range of devices, including smart TVs from Intex, Xiaomi, and TCL, as well as smartphones, tablets, media players, and web browsers.

Recently, it re-launched its 'JioCinema Premium' subscription, starting at Rs. 29 per month, offering ad-free streaming, up to 4K video quality with an option to download content in the app - crazy init?

So what now ? How do I grow this giant?

Proposed Strategy - To achieve the goal of increasing Jio Cinema's subscription base from 3% to 10%, focusing on Tier 1 cities with high-income, tech-savvy individuals aged 25-45. These users, already accustomed to multiple OTT platforms like Netflix, Prime, Hotstar etc who has validated that they have willingness & ability to pay for the subscription. This strategy focuses on developing a habit of using the app by offering a 25% discount on the current plan and focusing on high-quality original content. Thus attracting new subscribers and increasing revenue from 500million to 1.3billion INR annually.

This strategy aims to build partnerships with the top 10 diverse startups in India, inspired by the Japanese concept of Keiretsu (pronounced kay-ree-tsu). In Japan, Keiretsu refers to a network of interconnected businesses that work closely together for mutual success. In simple terms, it's like a "business family" where companies support each other while maintaining their independence. By adopting this approach, I propose a "CareYou" campaign that will help Jio Cinema become a central hub for innovation and growth in the Indian entertainment industry, fostering a mutually beneficial ecosystem for all partners involved.

Survey

In order to validate this hypothesis, I ll first conduct a survey with the below questions

Question	Why This Question	Possible Responses
Which streaming services do you currently subscribe to, and how does Jio Cinema compare to them?	To benchmark Jio Cinema against competitors	Netflix / Hotstar / Prime / Zee / Sony / Alt Balaji etc
Why would you buy any subscription?	To understand the value proposition that attracts users to subscribe.	Exclusive content / Live Sports / Ad-free experience / High-quality video
Why would you not buy any subscription?	To identify the causes preventing users from subscribing	High price / Poor content / Free content is better than paid
How often do you watch content on free streaming platforms versus paid ones?	To understand user preference for free vs paid content	Daily / Weekly / Monthly / Rarely
Which content do you prefer on Jio Cinema?	To understand content preferences among users.	Movies / TV Shows / Originals / Live Sports / Documentaries
How important is video quality for your streaming experience?	To assess the significance of streaming quality for users.	Yes / No / Dont care
What type of promotional offer would most likely convince you to subscribe to Jio Cinema?	To identify effective promotional strategies.	Percentage discount / Free trial period / Bundle deals
Would a discount of 25% or more on an annual subscription encourage you to subscribe?	To gauge the effectiveness of a specific discount offer	Yes / No / Dont care
Would you brag if you get a discount?	To understand social impact of discounts	Yes / No / Depends on the discount
Which payment model would you prefer for a Jio Cinema subscription?	To determine user preferences for subscription models.	Annual / Monthly auto-renewal / Pay-as-you-go
Would you be more likely to subscribe if Jio Cinema offered a family or group plan?	To assess potential for family/group plans	Yes / No
What payment options do you prefer for subscriptions?	To understand preferred payment methods	UPI / Credit card / Debit card / Net banking / Mobile wallets
Do you have any of these apps on your phone ? (all potential partner apps listed below)	To know the popularity of the potential apps	Yes - have most of them
Whats the frequency of usage?	To understand its impact	once a day across all apps
What other benefits you get from having these apps ?	To know if there's a value add with this partnership	None apart from what app provides

What to conclude ?

The survey highlights the need for strategic partnerships to grow Jio Cinema's paid user base. Collaborating with established players across various industries will significantly enhance the platform's reach and appeal. Additionally, implementing a monthly auto-debit payment model is identified as the most effective option for driving consistent subscription growth.

After thorough analysis, these are the 10 potential partners that promise maximum impact through strategic collaboration:

Potential Partners	Industry
Phone Pe	UPI platform
Zomato	Food Delivery
Zepto	Q-commerce
Meesho	E-commerce
Digit	Insurance
Ola Cabs	Ride Hailing platform
Kuku FM	Audio Streaming Platform
Urban Company	Home Service Platform
Lenskart	Optics Platform
Zerodha	Stockbroking App

Lets do the Litmus Test

Question	Phone Pe	Zomato	Zepto	Meesho	Digit	Ola Cabs	Kuku FM	Urban Company	Lenskart	Zerodha
Do you have PMF?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Are you finding it difficult to acquire new customers or enter a new market	Yes- top of the funnel is almost peaked with the current set of smartphone users	Yes- top of the funnel is almost peaked with the current set of smartphone users	Not really - But the market is too crowded with big players competing with tons of cash	Not really - But the market is too crowded with big players competing with tons of cash	No - But the discoverability of this app is low & this partnership will boost it exponentially	Yes- top of the funnel is almost peaked with the current set of smartphone users	No - But the discoverability of this app is low & this partnership will boost it exponentially	No - But the discoverability of this app is low & this partnership will boost it exponentially	No - But the discoverability of this app is low & this partnership will boost it exponentially	Not really - But the market is too crowded with big players competing with tons of cash
Are you looking to drive power usage?	Yes	Always	Yes	Always	Yes	Always	Yes	Yes	Yes	Always
Are there customers requests that can only be solved via partnership?	No - But this will solve the retention problem once n for all	No - But this will solve the retention problem once n for all	No - But this will solve the retention problem once n for all	No - But this will solve the retention problem once n for all	Yes - This will boost the active users of this company	No - But this will solve the retention problem once n for all	Yes - This will boost the active users of this company	No - But this will solve the retention problem once n for all	Yes - This will boost the active users of this company	No - But this will solve the retention problem once n for all

CareYou Campaign

In this campaign, new users (who have never bought jio premium ever) from these partner platforms will receive a 25% flat discount on the Jio Cinema subscription, reducing the cost from ₹29 to ₹22 per month, saving them ₹84 annually.

Partner companies will cover 60% of this discount (₹50 per user annually) in exchange for free advertising across Jio’s platforms, including Jio Cinema, Jio app, and Jio recharge, offering exposure to Jio's massive 450 million users.

The remaining 40% of the discount will be offset by increased ad revenue from the expanded user base, allowing Jio Cinema to charge higher ad rates.

Implementation

To avail the discounted subscription, users will initiate the process by logging into Jio Cinema using their mobile number. Subsequently, they will select the partner app (from the dropdown) with which they have an active account. The platform will then send a verification request to the selected partner app via an API call to confirm the user's active status. Upon successful verification, the user's mobile number will be established as the primary identifier for accessing the Jio Cinema platform. This mobile number will also serve as the link between the user's Jio Cinema account and their account on the partner platform, enabling seamless access to the discounted subscription.

Metrics

NSM - Increase in paid customer base from 18million to 60 million.
User Engagement - Increase in premium customer base usage
User Satisfaction / Retention - Number of users not revoking auto-debit.
Feature Adoption - Users upgrading from free tier to paid one on the app
Partner App Engagement - Tracks the increased engagement on partner apps due to the CareYou campaign.