Reliance-Disney merger: 120 TV channels, 2 streaming platforms in kitty

Reliance and Disney are set to dominate Indian entertainment and sports after the two companies decided to merge their respective digital streaming and television assets in India.

On Wednesday (February 28), Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), Viacom 18 Media Private Limited and The Walt Disney Company announced the signing of binding definitive agreements to form a joint venture (JV) that will combine the businesses of Viacom18 and Star India.

120 channels, 2 streaming platforms

As part of the transaction, the media undertaking of Viacom18 will be merged into Star India Private Limited (SIPL).

The merged Reliance-Disney entity will have 120 TV channels plus two digital streaming platforms.

For Indian TV and digital viewers, top entertainment, movies, sports will be available under one roof and the merger is likely to increase advertisement revenues.

Reliance and Disney's TV viewership share in the top 10 channels is estimated to be 40 per cent as of 2023, according to television measurement body Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), a report on MoneyControl said.

Big-time cricket including IPL on Reliance-Disney

With the IPL 2024 set to begin on March 22, Star has TV rights while Viacom18 has digital rights till 2027. Also, Reliance-Disney have the rights for International Cricket Council’s (ICC) matches (both TV and digital), BCCI’s domestic cricket matches, Wimbledon tennis, Pro Kabaddi League (PKL), among others.

Disney has about 80 TV channels in nine languages – known for Hindi entertainment, cricket, Hollywood movies among others, and Viacom18 has 40 channels in eight languages across general entertainment, movies, sports, youth, music and kids genres.

JioCinema, Viacom18’s OTT platform, is one of India’s leading streaming services and most popular destinations for live sports including the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Leaving their rivals far behind

According to news agency Reuters, the merged entity’s business will be much larger than rivals such as Japan's Sony, Netflix and India’s Zee Entertainment in the country’s $28 billion media and entertainment sector.

With a television network that reaches more than 700 million viewers in nine different languages every month and a streaming platform (Disney+ Hotstar) that has transformed the way India consumes entertainment, Disney Star is a leading media and entertainment company in the country.

The organisation’s entertainment portfolio generates more than 20,000 hours of original content every year. With leadership positions in every segment it occupies, Disney Star has been redefining the media landscape for more than 30 years now.

The JV will be one of the leading TV and digital streaming platforms for entertainment and sports content in India, bringing together iconic media assets across entertainment (e.g. Colors, Star Plus, Star GOLD, Star Movies, MTV, Comedy Central, VH1) and sports (e.g. Star Sports and Sports18) including access to highly anticipated events across television and digital platforms through JioCinema and Hotstar.

750 million viewers across India

The JV will have an estimated over 750 million viewers across India and will also cater to the Indian diaspora across the world.

The JV will also be granted exclusive rights to distribute Disney films and productions in India, with a license to more than 30,000 Disney content assets, providing a full suite of entertainment options for the Indian consumer.

As part of the JV, RIL has also agreed to invest Rs 11,500 crore ($ 1.4 billion) for its growth strategy. The transaction values the JV at Rs 70,352 crore ($ 8.5 billion) on a post-money basis, excluding synergies. The JV will be controlled by RIL and owned 16.34% by RIL, 46.82% by Viacom18 and 36.84% by Disney.