Disney+ Hotstar set a global streaming viewership record on October 22, drawing around 43 million viewers during the India vs New Zealand cricket match in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023.

With this, the streaming platform has surpassed the previous record of 35 million concurrent viewers, which was set during the India versus Pakistan match just over a week ago on October 14.

This back-to-back record-breaking streak comes on the back of Disney+ Hotstar offering free streaming of the ongoing ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup to mobile users in India. This was after rival service JioCinema streamed the IPL tournament for free to consumers earlier this year, MoneyControl reported.

“Making the Asia Cup and ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup available to a wider audience, we believe, will help us grow the overall ecosystem,” Sajith Sivanandan, head of Disney+ Hotstar said in a statement.

This development is likely to offer some relief to Disney+ Hotstar, which is currently the leading streaming service in the country but has faced a series of setbacks in the past year or two due to heightened competition in India’s video streaming industry.