$8.5B Disney-Reliance Merger Completed for Indian Assets

Reliance Industries and Walt Disney have finalized an $8.5 billion merger of their Indian media assets, concluded on 14th November. The merged assets have been reorganized into three distinct divisions, each led by its own CEO, marking a new era for the two media giants in India.

Finalization of the Merger

  • The merger was finalized combining the Indian media assets of Reliance Industries and Walt Disney.
  • Three main divisions have been created: Entertainment, Digital, and Sports.

Ownership Structure

  • Reliance Industries Limited (RIL): 16.34% ownership.
  • Viacom18: 46.82% ownership.
  • Disney: 36.84% ownership.

Leadership

  • Chairperson: Nita Ambani (Reliance Industries).
  • Vice Chairperson: Uday Shankar (Disney).
  • CEO of Digital Division: Kiran Mani (former Google executive, currently leads JioCinema).
  • Entertainment Division: Led by Kevin Vaz (currently at Viacom18).
  • Sports Division: Led by Sanjog Gupta (formerly with Disney India’s sports operations).

Key Divisions Post-Merger

  • Entertainment Division
  • Digital Division
  • Sports Division

Strategic Implications

India’s Biggest Entertainment Entity

  • The merger creates India’s largest media conglomerate with 120 TV channels and two streaming services (JioCinema and Hotstar).

Competition

  • The merged entity will compete directly with other media giants like Sony, Netflix, and Amazon in both television broadcasting and streaming content.

Approval from Indian Antitrust Regulator

  • The merger received approval from India’s competition regulator (CCI) in August, after addressing concerns about the dominance in cricket broadcasting rights.
Summary/Static Details
Why in the news? Reliance Industries and Walt Disney have completed the $8.5 billion merger of Indian media assets.
Ownership Structure – Reliance Industries Limited (RIL): 16.34%

– Viacom18: 46.82%

– Disney: 36.84%

Divisions Created 1. Entertainment: Combines Colors TV and Star networks.

2. Digital: Includes JioCinema and Hotstar.

3. Sports: Focuses on sports content management.

Leadership – Chairperson: Nita Ambani

– Vice Chairperson: Uday Shankar

– Digital CEO: Kiran Mani

– Entertainment CEO: Kevin Vaz

Regulatory Approval The merger was approved by India’s antitrust regulator in August after addressing concerns about cricket broadcasting dominance.
Shivam

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