Reliance and Disney to merge media assets in India

Robert Besser
03 Mar 2024, 10:18 GMT+10

Reliance Industries and U.S. entertainment giant Walt Disney on announced the merger of their India TV and streaming media assets, creating an US$8.5 billion entertainment company
Reliance will provide $1.4 billion for the merged entity and hold more than 63 percent stake, while Disney will own the rest
Mukesh Ambani, Asia's richest man leads Reliance

MUMBAI, India: India's top conglomerate Reliance Industries and U.S. entertainment giant Walt Disney have announced a merger of their India TV and streaming media assets, creating an US$8.5 billion entertainment company.

In a joint statement, the companies said Reliance will provide $1.4 billion for the merged entity and hold more than 63 percent stake, while Disney will own the rest.

Mukesh Ambani, Asia's richest man leads Reliance.

In another example of how foreign businesses can struggle to grow in India, Disney has failed to halt a user exodus from its Indian streaming business and suffered from financial pressure caused by billions of dollars in Indian cricket rights payments.

The merger values the India business of the U.S. entertainment giant at some $3 billion, far lower than the $15 billion valuation when Disney acquired it as part of its Fox deal in 2019.

The Reliance-Disney merged entity will have 120 TV channels. two streaming platforms, and TV and streaming cricket rights for major tournaments in a cricket-mad country.

Jinesh Joshi, an analyst at India's Prabhudas Lilladher, said, "The combined entity will create a sports behemoth in India."

"This merger will give Reliance great bargaining power when it comes to negotiating advertisement contracts. For Disney, coming together with a bigger player, in terms of financial pockets, will give it a cash cushion," he added.

The two companies said the transaction valued the merged venture at around $8.5 billion on a post-money basis, will have over 750 million viewers across India, and will also cater to the Indian diaspora worldwide.