BENGALURU, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Apple ( AAPL ) is tying up

with India's Airtel to offer the telecom firm's

premium customers its music and video streaming services for

free, potentially giving the U.S. firm access to thousands of

consumers in a price-sensitive market.

The move comes as competition tightens in India's

$28-billion entertainment market and an $8.5-billion merger of

the Indian media assets of Reliance and Walt Disney ( DIS ) faces close

scrutiny from regulators.

"Apple TV+ will come bundled with premium Airtel WiFi and

Postpaid plans," Airtel said in a statement on Tuesday, though

the companies did not disclose a deal value for the partnership

or information on costs.

With mostly English-language content, Apple TV+ is a small

player in the Indian market, where its rivals include Netflix ( NFLX )

, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar and billionaire

Mukesh Ambani's JioCinema.

Apple ( AAPL ) is following competitors in bundling streaming

services with telecom plans to grow its audience more quickly.

Premium users of Airtel's broadband and postpaid services

can access Apple TV+ and Apple Music later this year as part of

their plans.

Airtel will shut its music app Wynk in this process, two

sources with direct knowledge of the matter said, speaking on

condition of anonymity.

Airtel has about 281 million subscribers for its India

telecom offerings, while its top rival, Ambani's Reliance Jio,

has about 489 million.