MUMBAI: The $8.5 billion merger of Reliance and Walt Disney India media assets has been approved by India’s antitrust body, clearing the way for a deal that will create India’s largest entertainment business.
The proposed merger, first announced in February, is expected to combine 120 TV channels and two streaming platforms, challenging rivals such as Japan’s Sony 6758.T and Netflix NFLX.O in a $28 billion media and entertainment sector set to be worth $100 billion by the end of the decade.
Here is a list of the other leading media players in India and the sectors they dominate:
ZEE ENTERTAINMENT
One of the oldest media companies in India, Zee’s businesses include television broadcasting, video streaming and movie production. Its domestic broadcast portfolio consists of around 48 TV channels as well as a streaming platform.
Japan’s Sony Group in January pulled the plug on a $10 billion merger deal with Zee that had been in the works for two years, citing unresolved “closing conditions” and leadership disputes.
SONY INDIA
In its 29th year of operation, Sony Pictures Networks India, Sony Group’s subsidiary, operates 26 channels ranging from general entertainment to sports and movies.
It says its content reaches as many as 700 million viewers in India and is available in 167 countries.
Sony also operates the video streaming platform Sony LIV in India.
NETFLIX
The streaming giant Netflix views India as a key market. In a recent visit to India, Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos was quoted as saying that he sees its Indian subscriber base rising to 100 million over time, from around 10 million now.
AMAZON PRIME
Amazon Prime Video is estimated to have about 20 million users in India. Its Indian aggregation service, Channels, offers subscriptions to other global and local video streaming services.
BENNETT COLEMAN AND COMPANY
Based in Mumbai and established in 1913, the company produces its flagship Times of India newspaper and owns a host of assets in broadcasting, publishing, radio, film and entertainment.
SUN TV NETWORK
Dominant in south India, Sun TV SUTV.NS operates 35 TV channels in six languages, along with 69 FM radio stations and three daily newspapers.
Below is a breakdown of their assets, including critical sports rights:
TELEVISION
Viacom18, majority owned by Reliance, has 40 television channels, including Comedy Central, Nickelodeon and MTV.
Disney Star, a household name in India, has about 80 channels and the brand is known for Hindi family dramas as well as Hollywood movies.
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Viacom18 has the TV rights for domestic and international cricket matches run by the Board of Control for Cricket in India. Disney has TV rights for the popular Indian Premier League (IPL) until 2027.
Both companies’ channels span general entertainment, sports, children’s TV, documentaries and lifestyle programmes. They also cover several regional language programming.
STREAMING
Disney has the digital rights for International Cricket Council’s matches in India until 2027, while Ambani’s JioCinema now has the streaming rights for IPL until 2027 after outbidding Disney.
Reliance’s JioCinema and Disney’s Hotstar would have a combined library of 200,000 plus hours of content that includes television dramas, movies and sport events.
Disney’s Hotstar was the second-most downloaded video streaming app in India in 2022 after MX Player, according to a report by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry and EY.
Disney’s streaming content includes global blockbusters, movies from the Marvel universe as well as National Geographic documentaries. It streamed seven out of the top 15 most-watched original shows in India in 2022, according to a report by media consulting firm Ormax.
JioCinema last year struck deals with The Pokemon Company to stream content and signed a deal with Warner Bros to bring more Hollywood and international content on its platform.