Disney Reportedly in Talks To Sell India Business to Mukesh Ambani-Led Reliance Group Amid Rise of JioCinema
After bagging content rights of HBO and NBCUniversal, Reliance Industries is reportedly taking on one of its biggest rivals in India, the Walt Disney Company. According to the latest reports, the two industry giants are in talks of entering a multi-billion dollar deal where Reliance will acquire a controlling stake in Disney’s business in India.
Bloomberg reported the news on October 23, according to information they received from “people familiar with the matter.” According to the latest reports, the assets of Disney’s business in India can be valued at $10 billion (INR 83,100 crores approximately). The acquisition by Reliance will involve about $7 billion (INR 58,200 crores approximately) to $8 billion (INR 66,500 crores approximately) of those assets.
It has been reported that the acquisition could be expected to be announced in November 2023. Additionally, some of Reliance’s media units will be merged with Disney Star as well, and Disney is also expected to hold a minority stake in Reliance as well, after the completion of the acquisition.
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As for the future of Disney+ Hotstar in India, it is time to look back at the high tide the OTT platform was riding when Hotstar was rebranded to Disney+ Hotstar in 2020 following Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox and Star in 2019. However, the platform has faced setbacks, losing the digital rights to the Indian Premier League (IPL) to Mukesh Ambani-led Viacom 18, a significant loss. More recently, Disney+ Hotstar also lost access to HBO and Warner Bros. content, now available on the Viacom18 streaming platform JioCinema in India. Reliance has emerged as a major competitor to Disney Star in India, and despite declining subscriber numbers, the US company has continued to invest in the Indian market. The news of Reliance’s acquisition of Disney Star’s assets is a result of these developments.
While further details have not yet been revealed, Bloomberg reports that a final decision on the deal and valuation has not been made yet. There continues to be a possibility that Disney will, however, “hold onto the assets for a bit longer.” A Reliance spokesperson on the other hand told Bloomberg that Reliance “evaluates various opportunities on an ongoing basis” and “will make necessary disclosures as required.” Disney has yet to issue a statement regarding the development.
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