India’s Competition Commission (CCI) has given its nod to the Rs 70,350-crore merger between Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and Disney’s Indian media assets, a deal that is set to create a media giant in the country. The approval is subject to certain voluntary modifications proposed by the involved parties.
The announcement from the CCI was made via a post on the X platform (formerly Twitter), confirming the combination involving RIL, Viacom18 Media Pvt Ltd, Digital18 Media Ltd, Star India Pvt Ltd, and Star Television Productions Ltd.
This agreement, in the works since February, brings together RIL’s subsidiary Viacom18 and Disney’s Indian unit, Star India. Both groups combine their media operations into one single entity that will be valued at Rs 70,350 crore-roughly $8.5 billion. RIL will contribute Rs 11,500 crore, or $1.4 billion, to the joint venture for growth purposes.
The company will have 120 TV channels and two streaming services, competing with biggies like Sony, Netflix, and Amazon. There will also be ten members in the board, comprising five nominated by RIL, three by Disney, and two independent directors. While Nita Ambani will be the Chairperson, Uday Shankar, former Walt Disney executive, will be the Vice Chairperson.
The merger is expected to be wrapped up by the end of 2024 or early 2025. The ownership structure will be represented as follows: RIL holding 16.34%, Viacom18 with 46.82%, and Disney with 36.84%, with RIL retaining control.
An approval from the CCI had come just a day ahead of the 47th annual general meeting of Reliance Industries, and the announcement to this effect was made after trading hours with RIL shares ending largely unchanged at Rs 2,999 on the NSE.
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Source: Moneycontrol
News Desk
