HOTSTAR ACCESSIBILITY PLAN

  1. General

    1.1 Contact Information

    1.2 Feedback Process

  2. Accessibility Statement

  3. Areas Described under Section 5 of the Accessible Canada Act

    3.1 Employment

    3.2 The Built Environment

    3.3 Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)

    3.4 Communication other than ICT

    3.5 The Procurement of Goods, Services and Facilities

    3.6 The Designs and Delivery of Programs and Services

    3.7 Transportation

  4. Consultations

    4.1 Internal Consultations

    4.2 External Consultations

  5. Monitoring Progress

    5.1 Oversight and Reporting

    5.2 Commitment to Continuous Improvement

1. General

1.1 Contact Information

The Director, Customer Experience is responsible for receiving feedback on barriers and this Accessibility Plan, on behalf of Jiostar India Private Limited (formerly Star India Private Limited) (“Jiostar”), the operator of the Canadian version of the streaming service currently branded as ‘Hotstar’.

You may reach out to the person designated above in relation to your accessibility related requirements from us, including requesting this Accessibility Plan or our feedback process description in alternate formats and providing feedback.

You can contact us via any of the methods listed in Clause 1.2 (Accessibility Feedback) below, or at any of the following coordinates:

Mailing Address: Jiostar India Private Limited,

Star House, Urmi Estate,

95, Ganpatrao Kadam Marg,

Lower Parel (West),

Mumbai, 400013, India.

Phone Number: +91 22 6630 5555

Email Address: help@hotstar.com

1.2 Feedback Process

If you have any feedback regarding the accessibility of Hotstar, we would love to hear from you.

If you are currently experiencing accessibility issues with Hotstar and need assistance, we encourage you to contact us on help@hotstar.com

How to share feedback

You can provide us with your feedback regarding the accessibility of Hotstar through any of the below options, and it will be addressed in accordance with this accessibility feedback process. You may provide your feedback anonymously, in which case we recommend using Phone or Webform. You do not have to include any personal information that may directly or indirectly identify you in your feedback, such as your name or contact details. Any personal information you choose to include is voluntary and will not be used for any purpose other than reviewing, and if needed, responding to your feedback. Please do not include any sensitive personal details, such as health information.

Acknowledgement of receipt

We will acknowledge receipt of feedback, except feedback provided anonymously. If you choose to mail us when you provide your feedback, we will provide you with an acknowledgement that we have received your feedback. If you provide your feedback via phone and leave a call back number, our call back to you will constitute acknowledgement that we have received your feedback.

Responsible party

The Director, Customer Experience is responsible for receiving feedback.

How your feedback is used

Alternative formats

You can request an alternative format of this feedback process description or Accessibility Plan in print, large print, Braille, audio format or an electronic format that is compatible with adaptive technology, or other agreed-upon format, by sending an email to help@hotstar.com.

2. Accessibility Mission Statement

At Jiostar India Private Limited (formerly Star India Private Limited) (“Jiostar”), we are committed to fostering a barrier-free environment for persons with disabilities. Our mission is to ensure equitable access to our content, enabling all individuals to enjoy and engage with our platform currently branded as ‘Hotstar’ (“Platform”) without limitations.

We are an India-based entity operating primarily from India and offering the Hotstar service in Canada, which is a niche platform largely targeted towards the South Asian diaspora in Canada. While the Hotstar service has a small/limited number of Canadian subscribers, we understand the significance of making content accessible and we will work to support the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission’s (“Commission”) continuing efforts towards making digital services in Canada accessible, to the extent we can.

It is because of our commitment to accessibility that we became the first Indian media streaming platform to enable Indian Sign Language narration for major cricketing events on our platform in India We also enabled audio description feeds for select major cricketing events apart from enabling described video/audio description and closed captioning for select films and original shows on our platform in India, and it is in furtherance of this commitment that we intend to evaluate and attempt to address accessibility concerns in Canada, in line with the content we make available there.

3. Areas of Accessibility

  1. Employment

Jiostar is an equal opportunity employer and strives to create an inclusive culture where all employees are treated with respect and dignity. However, we have no employees or a physical presence in Canada.

  1. The built environment

Jiostar’s head office is currently located in Lower Parel, Mumbai, India, and we do not have any offices or other physical presence in Canada.

  1. Information and communication technologies (ICT)

Jiostar utilizes ICT for making available the Platform and has conducted an audit/assessment of its Indian versions of the Hotstar applications (iOS and Android), which is applicable for the Indian applications as well as the Hotstar applications available in Canada, as they are based on the same build. The audit/assessment was carried out to identify the current accessibility status of the Platform in relation to the core user flow, the details of which are:

However, accessibility gaps remain in several other user flows. Accordingly, we have identified areas for improvement in non-core user flows, which include:

We intend for the Platform to meet WCAG 2.0 AA compliance across the following key flows in a phased manner across the next three years:

Sections:

Onboarding & Login

Home Page

Category Pages

Details Page

Watch Page & Player

Search Page

Subscription Page

Downloads Page

My Space Page

  1. Communications other than ICT

Not relevant to our operations.

  1. The procurement of goods, services and facilities

The suppliers, service providers and facility-contractors we work with are contractually mandated to work in compliance with our Code of Business Conduct which includes the principle of inclusivity.

  1. The design and delivery of programs and services

In addition to making the Platform’s interface and other non-content aspects accessible, we are also working towards making the content displayed on the Platform accessible. Currently, some of the TV shows and majority of the movies on our platform include subtitles or closed captions. Also, we have enabled described video/audio descriptions for new movies and in-house content released after July 2024.

We recognize that it is essential for us to increase the percentage of programming with closed captioning for viewers with hearing impairment and described video/audio descriptors for users with visual impairments. Our ultimate aim is to provide programs with more accessible formats such as described video for viewers with visual disability, and closed captioning for viewers with hearing impairments, to the extent possible and subject to us having the relevant rights. However, this is a long-term goal that has to be implemented gradually, considering the challenge of limited resources, such as human power for audio descriptions and closed captioning in the various Indian languages in which we broadcast. Therefore, we plan to identify the priority, assess resources, and create a roadmap to achieve the goal in the next few years.

  1. Transportation

Not relevant to our operations.

4. Consultations

4.1 Internal Consultations

A cross-functional internal team comprising Designers, Product Managers, and Engineers participated in individual consultations over a quarter. Their insights helped identify accessibility challenges across different platforms on which Hotstar is available.

4.2 External Consultations

Mission Accessibility, a non-profit organization co-founded by two blind individuals, which is dedicated to advancing the rights of individuals with disabilities, with a particular focus on digital accessibility, conducted an independent assessment of the Indian versions of the Hotstar applications available on iOS and Android. Their audit, led by an accessibility specialist, provided valuable feedback and a formal report, which is applicable for the Indian applications as well as the Hotstar applications available in Canada, which are based on the same build.

5. Monitoring Progress

This Accessibility Plan is a dynamic document reflecting Jiostar’s ongoing commitment to accessibility and inclusion.

5.1 Oversight and Reporting

  1. Product Managers will report progress to Jiostar’s management on a regular basis.

  2. Reports will be submitted to the Commission as follows:

    • Initial Progress Report: 1st June 2026

    • Second Progress Report: 1st June 2027

    • Updated Accessibility Plan: 1st June 2028

5.2 Commitment to Continuous Improvement

We will continue to engage with stakeholders, collect feedback, and incorporate it into our processes. Accessibility and inclusivity will remain central to Jiostar’s operations as we work towards a barrier-free future for all our users.