The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the proposed $8.5 billion merger between Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and Walt Disney’s media assets in India, subject to certain voluntary modifications by the companies. The merged entity will create India’s largest entertainment player with a vast reach across broadcasting and streaming platforms.
Key Highlights
- CCI initially raised concerns that the merger could harm competition due to the combined entity’s power over lucrative cricket broadcast rights worth billions of dollars.
- The regulator was worried about the merged company’s potential to influence pricing and control over advertisers in the cricket broadcast market.
- To address these concerns, RIL and Disney offered to shut down certain TV channels in Hindi and regional markets.
- The companies also agreed to comply with other voluntary modifications as conditions for CCI’s approval of the deal.
Merger Details
- The transaction will combine the businesses of Viacom18 and Star India to create a media powerhouse with 120 TV channels and two streaming platforms – Disney+ Hotstar and JioCinema.
- RIL will have a majority stake in the merged entity, which had an operating revenue of ₹25,000 crore in FY23.
- The deal is expected to be completed in Q4 2024 or Q1 2025, subject to necessary regulatory approvals.
The CCI’s conditional approval paves the way for the Reliance-Disney merger, which will reshape India’s media and entertainment landscape. However, the companies must comply with the voluntary modifications to address the regulator’s competition concerns.
