"Reliance Will Proceed With Legal Action": Claims ‘Dreamer’ Who Wanted To Barter JioHotstar Domain For Tuition Fee
In a quirky turn of events, a Delhi-based entrepreneur, who bought the domain name “JioHotstar.com” in early 2023, faces legal action from Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL). The dreamer, who hoped to sell the domain to fund his Executive MBA (EMBA) tuition fees at Cambridge University, revealed in an update that Reliance has denied his request for £93,345 in exchange for the domain.
“An executive from Reliance, Ambujesh Yadav Ji, AVP, Commercials, reached out,” the domain owner shared. “I requested £93,345, representing the fees for my EMBA program, but the request was denied. Reliance will proceed with legal action. I hope they reconsider this kind request.”
The entrepreneur, who preferred to remain anonymous, believes he did not infringe on any trademarks when purchasing the domain. “When I bought the domain in 2023, JioHotstar didn’t exist, and no trademark for the name was registered,” he explained. Facing potential legal challenges, he expressed gratitude to those who offered support and appealed for legal assistance.
The background to this unusual situation lies in Reliance’s ongoing consolidation in the streaming market. Following a high-profile $8.5 billion merger between Star India and Viacom18, Reliance is aligning Disney+ Hotstar as its primary streaming platform. The merged entity is expected to absorb JioCinema, with Disney+ Hotstar set to emerge as the sole brand post-merger.
Amidst this merger speculation, the dreamer anticipated a rebranding of the combined service to “JioHotstar” and purchased the domain name as a clever investment. Inspired by Reliance’s previous rebranding of Saavn to JioSaavn, he hoped that selling the domain would fund his dream of studying entrepreneurship at Cambridge, having participated in their Accelerate startup programme in 2021.
While his foresight was impressive, Reliance’s refusal to entertain the transaction has left the entrepreneur disappointed. “For a multi-billion-dollar company like Reliance, this is a minor expense, but for me, it’s life-changing,” he had written in his original plea.
An official Reliance reaction on the development is yet to come.
