Reliance Industries and Walt Disney Company have completed the merger of their assets in India to create a ₹70,352 crore ($8.5 billion) mammoth media giant.
Reliance Industries said on Thursday that they had received all the regulatory approvals for the merger that was announced in February. As part of the transaction, RIL has also invested ₹11,500 crore ($1.4 billion) in the joint venture. RIL will hold a 16.34 per cent stake in the venture while its step-down subsidiary, Viacom 18, will own 46.82 per cent. Disney’s stake is capped at 36.84 per cent.
The joint venture will have a combined revenue of approximately ₹26,000 crore ($3.1 billion) for the fiscal year ended March 2024. It will operate over 100 television channels and produce 30,000+ hours of TV entertainment content annually.
The JioCinema and Hotstar digital platforms have an aggregate subscription base of over 50 million. The joint venture also holds a portfolio of sports rights across cricket, football and other sports.
Nita Ambani will be the chairperson of the joint venture while Uday Shankar will be the vice chairperson providing strategic guidance to the venture.
