Discovery added a SVOD layer to its streaming platform in Japan this week along with Rs299/US$4 a year direct-to-consumer subscription service – D Plus – in India.

The company said its initial target audience in India was the 25 million people of “core TV infotainment consumers” (defined as “those who watch over three hours of infotainment a month”) in tier one and tier two towns.

At 6am this coming Monday, the by-then-week-old platform will premiere Tamil actor Rajinikanth’s “Into The Wild with Bear Grylls”, ahead of its prime time television premiere 14 hours later.

The Japanese SVODupgrades theexisting Dplay platform, which launched in Japan in September last year as a dedicated AVOD service.

Discovery operates two satellite channels in Japan – Discovery and Animal Planet.

In addition to the free tier, the Japanese service is offering an advertising-free standard plan for ¥750/US$7 a month and premium tier for ¥1080/US$10 a month, with discounts for annual subscriptions.

The premium plan includes access to new content, including more than 80 episodes of BBC natural history titles.