Hotstar For PC Free Account Archives

On the back of India's love for cricket, an ad-supported model, and the deep pockets of its parent company Star India, Hotstar has turned itself into the biggest streaming service in the country by most metrics. At the same time, it's stayed away from going too far into original content unlike every other platform out there, preferring to license content from international heavyweights such as HBO, CBS, and Fox, the last of which owns Star India. As Disney plans to roll out its own streaming service next year, Hotstar will certainly be in a curious position given Disney's pending acquisition of Fox, and it'll be interesting to see what happens.

What is Hotstar?

Hotstar is a video streaming service that is currently available only in India, the US, and Canada. Unlike Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, it relies on a “freemium” model, though that's only applicable in India. That means users can access a portion of the content for free, while the rest of the content — labelled ‘Hotstar Premium' — requires a monthly subscription. In the US and Canada, Hotstar is subscription-only.

Like the big two, the size of Hotstar's content slate is dependent on the deals in place with content distributors. It's why the Hollywood content is only available in India, which also keeps varying as the rights keep expiring and need to be renewed. Most of Hotstar's licensing deals aren't extensive enough, which is why you can't download HBO shows and Disney movies among others.

Moreover, Hotstar memberships don't work across regions unlike Netflix. If you have Hotstar Premium in India and are travelling to the US or Canada, you won't be able to watch Hotstar, and vice versa.

Is Hotstar free?

In India, yes and no. It's “freemium”, as we mentioned earlier. In the US and Canada, no it's not free.

How to download Hotstar videos and movies?

It's pretty simple. Follow these instructions to download TV shows and movies from Hotstar on Android and iOS.

Hotstar registration and login

You don't need a Hotstar account if you're trying to watch free videos. To sign up in India, open the Hotstar website or app, and hit play on any video that carries the ‘Premium' sticker. Then follow the steps. In the US and Canada, visit the respective websites — us.hotstar.com or ca.hotstar.com — and then hit the subscribe button to begin creating an account.

If you are already registered, look for the sign in option to login. It's in the top-right corner on the website and in the left sidebar in the mobile app.

How to download Hotstar app? Is it free for Android mobiles?

The Hotstar app is available for download on Android and Android TV, iPhone, iPad and Apple TV, and Amazon Fire TV. In the US and Canada, it's also available as a channel on Roku. Use the respective links or search for ‘Hotstar' in the Play Store, App Store, Amazon Store, or Roku Channel Store.

Yes, the Hotstar app is free on all platforms, including Android.

Hotstar Premium account and cost

There are two types of Hotstar Premium memberships available in India, one just for live sports and the other covering everything under the ‘Premium' umbrella including Hollywood movies and TV shows. The former, called All Sports, costs Rs. 299 per year while the latter is available at Rs. 199 per month or Rs. 999 per year.

The monthly subscription carries a seven-day trial. If you cancel within that period, your money will be refunded. The yearly subscriptions are non-refundable.

How to get Hotstar Premium for free?

Except the seven-day trial attached to the monthly Rs. 199 subscription, there is no other way to get all the content under Hotstar Premium for free. You can get a portion of it — 19 live channels — for free with Airtel TV or JioTV, but it's ad-supported mind you. Moreover, Airtel users have to purchase a separate sports pack for BCCI tournaments.

Hotstar in USA and Canada

In the US, Hotstar costs $10 (about Rs. 730) per month for entertainment only, which covers TV shows and movies from India produced or licensed by Star India. If you want access to both entertainment and live sports, that will cost you $20 (about Rs. 1,460) per month or $100 (about Rs. 7,300) per year in the US. The latter option helps you save $140 (about Rs. 10,240).

In Canada, entertainment-only comes in at CAD 8 (about Rs. 450) per month. It's CAD 15 (about Rs. 840) per month or CAD 80 (about Rs. 4,470) per year for entertainment and sports, with savings of CAD 100 (about Rs. 5,590) with the latter.

Entertainment-only plans come with a month-long free trial in the US and Canada.

Hotstar Jio

The Jio and Hotstar partnership gives the subscribers of the former access to 19 Star India channels. You will need both the JioTV and Hotstar app on your device. Open the JioTV app and select any of the 19 available channels and you will be redirected to the Hotstar app, where you can watch live TV without having to pay for Hotstar Premium.

How to watch Hotstar on PC? How to download Hotstar app for PC?

Simply open the Hotstar website in a supported browser. Hotstar says it works best on Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Safari on Windows 7 or macOS 10.2 or above. You will need Adobe Flash, unfortunately.

There is no Hotstar app for PC.

How to watch Hotstar on TV?

There are a few ways to do that. You can use the Hotstar app for Android TV, Apple TV, Amazon Fire OS, or Roku, as previously mentioned. Additionally, you can cast Hotstar from Android and iOS to a Google Chromecast connected to your TV.

How to watch IPL online? When will IPL live stream on Hotstar? Where to watch IPL live stream?

Star India, which owns Hotstar, has the rights to the Indian Premier League through 2022. IPL, which usually runs from April to May each year, is available on Hotstar across all platforms. Though it used to be free for everyone earlier, IPL is now part of Hotstar Premium but still provides a 10-minute free stream for all users. Airtel and Jio users can watch IPL for free via the respective apps we talked about earlier.

Best Hotstar movies and TV shows

Glad you asked. We have compiled a list of best movies and TV shows on Hotstar, including the likes of Toy Story and Game of Thrones. You should definitely check both those out.

Disney+ Hotstar has announced a list of 18 titles that will be released on its platform in September 2020. The biggest of the lot is the return of The Simpsons — and other animated comedies — towards the end of the month. Amongst Disney+ originals, we've got the LeBron James-produced docuseries Becoming, which drops all episodes on September 18. It follows celebrities back in their hometowns and revisiting places central to their upbringing. Actually, Mulan is by far the biggest Disney+ title in September but it's not coming to Disney+ Hotstar, though reports suggest that it might be available in December globally.

From The Boys to Enola Holmes, What to Watch in September

Disney+ originals in September also include a talk show called Earth to Ned — all episodes arrive September 4 on Disney+ Hotstar — that will be hosted by an alien and his lieutenant who call off their invasion of Earth after they fall in love with human culture. Elsewhere, we've a deep dive into Disney theme parks with voice of Olaf Josh Gad as narrator in Magic of Disney's Animal Kingdom. And lastly, there's the new Disney+ movie Secret Society of Second-Born Royals, which is about superpowered kids protecting the world. The latter two titles will release September 25.

Outside of the Disney+ originals space, Disney+ Hotstar gets another new HBO series in The Third Day, led by Jude Law and Naomie Harris. The Third Day starts September 15 in India. We also have a new series coming in from Disney-owned Fox called Filthy Rich — premièring September 22 — that's based on a New Zealand series of the same name. Those are in addition to returning shows such as Lovecraft Country, the Trump parody Our Cartoon President, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver season 7, Real Time with Bill Maher season 18, and the fourth and final season of the anthology Room 104.

Of course, the biggest thing on Disney+ Hotstar in September is not a new movie or series. But rather the return of the Twenty20 cricket tournament Indian Premier League, now under a cloud of coronavirus scares. IPL 2020 starts September 19.

Speaking of sports, there's also the return of the (English) Premier League — from September 12 — after what is quite possibly the shortest gap of all time, also due to the pandemic. And lastly, we also have the US Open, the only tennis Grand Slam that wasn't cancelled in the wake of the pandemic. Many top players are skipping the event, for good reason, but it's still taking place. The US Open ends September 13.

Aquaman, Enola Holmes, and More on Netflix in September

Everything on the list below is exclusive to Disney+ Hotstar Premium, available at Rs. 299 a month or Rs. 1,499 a year. With that, here's a (developing) list of movies and TV shows coming to Disney+ Hotstar in September 2020. Disney+ originals are marked in bold for your convenience.

September 4
Earth to Ned: Season 1, Episodes 1–10
Muppets Now: Season 1 Finale, Episode 6 “Socialised”
One Day At Disney: Season 1, Episode 40 “Alice Taylor: Studiolab”
Pixar In Real Life: Season 1, Episode 11 “Coco: Abuelita Says No Music”
Weird But True!: Season 3, Episode 4 “Germs”

September 5
Room 104: Season 4, Episode 7 “Foam Party”

September 6
Dream Raider: Season 1, Episode 4

September 7
Lovecraft Country: Season 1, Episode 4 “A History of Violence”

September 11
One Day At Disney: Season 1, Episode 41 “Amanda Lauder: Chef Chocolatier”
Weird But True!: Season 3, Episode 5 “Photography”

September 12
Room 104: Season 4, Episode 8 “No Dice”

September 13
Dream Raider: Season 1, Episode 5

September 14
Lovecraft Country: Season 1, Episode 5 “Strange Case”
Our Cartoon President: Season 3, Episode 10 “Coronavirus”

September 15
Real Time with Bill Maher: Season 18, Episode 26
The Third Day: Episode 1 “Friday – The Father”

September 18
Becoming: Season 1, Episodes 1–10
One Day At Disney: Season 1, Episode 42 “Dr. Natalie Mylniczenko: Veterinarian”
Weird But True!: Season 1, Episode 6 “Trains”

September 19
Room 104: Season 4, Episode 9 “The Last Man”

September 20
Dream Raider: Season 1, Episode 6

September 21
Lovecraft Country: Season 1, Episode 6 “Meet Me in Daegu”
Our Cartoon President: Season 3, Episode 11 “Party Unity”

September 22
Filthy Rich: Season 1, Episode 1 “Pilot”
Real Time with Bill Maher: Season 18, Episode 27
The Third Day: Episode 2 “Saturday – The Son”

September 25
Magic of Disney's Animal Kingdom: Episode 1
One Day At Disney: Season 1, Episode 43 “Ashley Girdich: R&D Imagineer Manager”
Secret Society of Second-Born Royals
Weird But True!: Season 3, Episode 7 “Venomous Animals”

September 26
Room 104: Season 4, Episode 10 “The Night Babby Died”

September 27
Dream Raider: Season 1, Episode 7

September 28
Bless the Harts: Season 2, Episode 1
Family Guy: Season 19, Episode 1 “Stewie's First Word”
Lovecraft Country: Season 1, Episode 7 “I Am.”
Our Cartoon President: Season 3, Episode 12 “Debate Prep”
The Simpsons: Season 32, Episode 1 “Undercover Burns”

September 29
Filthy Rich: Season 1, Episode 2 “John 3:3”
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Season 7, Episode 24
Real Time with Bill Maher: Season 18, Episode 28
The Third Day: Episode 3 “Sunday – The Ghost”

Can Netflix force Bollywood to reinvent itself? We discussed this on Orbital, our weekly technology podcast, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts or RSS. You can also download the episode or just hit the play button below.