News Brief
After Sony-Zee Merger Deal Termination, Disney Star Faces A Potential $2 Billion Downgrade By Reliance: Report
Reliance and Walt Disney.
Recently, Sony Group had called off its $10 billion merger plans with Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited.
This comes amid the reports when Reliance Industries and Walt Disney had taken a significant step forward in their planned media and entertainment merger by appointing law firms for antitrust due diligence.
However, Zee Entertainment dispute over a $1.5-billion sub-licensing deal for the International Cricket Council (ICC) is casting a shadow over Disney Star, raising concerns of a possible $2 billion downgrade by Reliance.
The dispute hinges on Zee's claim that the ICC TV contract with Disney Star was contingent on the successful completion of Zee's merger with Sony.
The potential downgrade is linked to the anticipated losses from the ICC media rights agreement.
As reported by Economic Times, If Disney Star is obligated to service the ICC TV deal, in addition to the digital rights, the downgrade could reach $2 billion.
Last week, the ICC confirmed Disney Star's coverage of the ICC U19 Men's Cricket World Cup 2024, despite recent losses in the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) media rights.
Reliance and Walt Disney have signed a non-binding term sheet to merge Viacom18 and Disney Star, with ongoing due diligence and valuation exercises.
If the deal materializes, it will create a media powerhouse with roughly Rs 25,000 crore in combined revenues.
Disney Star, having bid $3 billion for ICC media rights based on its understanding with Zee, faces potential losses exceeding $1.5 billion, according to industry insiders.
Support Swarajya's 50 Ground Reports Project & Sponsor A Story
Every general election Swarajya does a 50 ground reports project.
Aimed only at serious readers and those who appreciate the nuances of political undercurrents, the project provides a sense of India's electoral landscape. As you know, these reports are produced after considerable investment of travel, time and effort on the ground.
This time too we've kicked off the project in style and have covered over 30 constituencies already. If you're someone who appreciates such work and have enjoyed our coverage please consider sponsoring a ground report for just Rs 2999 to Rs 19,999 - it goes a long way in helping us produce more quality reportage.
You can also back this project by becoming a subscriber for as little as Rs 999 - so do click on this links and choose a plan that suits you and back us.
Click below to contribute.
Latest
