According To Reuters, Disney And Reliance Have Signed A Non-Binding Agreement For The India Media Operations Merger.

A Non-Binding Term Sheet To Merge Their Indian Media Businesses Was Signed By Walt Disney And Reliance Industries, The Most Valuable Company In India, According To A December 25 Report In The Economic Times, Which Cited Unidentified Sources.

According To The Newspaper, The Merger Would Give Indian Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Group More Control, With Reliance Holding 51 Percent Through A Combination Of Shares And Cash And Disney Holding The Remaining 49 Percent.

Reliance Hopes To Conclude The Process By The End Of January, Subject To Regulatory Approvals, And The Deal Is Expected To Be Finalized By February, The Company Stated.

Reliance And Disney Did Not Immediately Respond To Reuters Requests For Comment.

Two Weeks Ago, Reuters Revealed That Company Executives Were Getting Together In London To Talk About The Next Phase Of The Media Merger.

In The Event Of A Merger, One Of India’s Largest Entertainment Conglomerates Would Be Formed, Going Up Against Streaming Behemoths Like Netflix And Amazon Prime As Well As Television Partners Zee Entertainment And Sony.

Via Its Media And Entertainment Division Viacom18, Reliance Operates A Number Of TV Channels As Well As The Jiocinema Streaming App. Disney And Ambani Are Engaged In A Heated Dispute Over Ambani’s Offer To Stream The Indian Premier League Cricket Event For Free. Disney Used To Own The Digital Rights To The Competition In India.

In Recent Quarters, This Has Led To A Subscriber Exodus From Disney’s Streaming App Hotstar. Disney Has Been Investigating The Possibility Of Selling Its India Business, Which Consists Of Numerous TV Channels, Or Entering Into A Joint Venture Arrangement Since The Beginning Of This Year. According To The Economic Times, The Planned Agreement Would Establish A Division Under Reliance’s Viacom18 To Acquire Control Of Star India Through A Stock Exchange. The Parties Are Developing A Proposal To Provide The Company Between $1 Billion And $1.5 Billion In Investments. Said, Without Specifying Whether This Was The Total Or The Amount Each Would Invest.

According To The Newspaper, Reliance And Disney Are Anticipated To Have An Equal Number Of Directors On The Board, With At Least Two Representatives Each. Additionally, The Article Stated That They Are Considering Adding At Least Two Independent Directors, But This May Change In The Upcoming Weeks.

Source : Money Control Via Dailyhunt