Reliance Industries and Walt Disney have sought antitrust clearance for his or her $8.5 billion India media merger by arguing their mixed energy, particularly on cricket broadcasting, is not going to hit advertisers, two individuals with direct information advised Reuters.
The deal, introduced in February, has been anticipated by specialists to face intense scrutiny as it can create India’s largest leisure participant with 120 TV channels and two streaming providers. It is going to additionally personal profitable rights for cricket, India’s high sport.
Reliance and Disney have advised the Competitors Fee of India (CCI) the cricket rights have been obtained individually underneath a bidding course of which was aggressive, mentioned the 2 sources, who declined to be named because the approval course of is confidential.
The businesses argue different opponents will not be harmed as they’ll bid when these rights expire in 2027 and 2028, the sources added.
The CCI will now assessment the confidential submitting. Although any clearance sometimes takes a number of weeks, it might take longer if the watchdog is not happy and seeks extra data.
Reliance, Walt Disney and the CCI didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark.
Disney and Reliance at the moment personal digital and TV cricket rights value billions of {dollars} for the world’s most useful cricket event the Indian Premier League, Worldwide Cricket Council matches and people of the Indian cricket board.
That has raised issues the merged entity might have excessive leverage over advertisers and customers, with Okay.Okay Sharma, a former head of mergers at CCI, saying in March the regulator might be involved as “hardly something of cricket will likely be left” as Disney-Reliance can have “absolute management over cricket”.
Jefferies has estimated the Disney-Reliance entity will command a 40% share of the promoting market in TV and streaming segments.
The businesses have advised the CCI of their submitting there will likely be no impression on advertisers as cricket-watching customers may be focused on many rival platforms the place additionally they devour content material, together with YouTube and Meta, the sources mentioned.
Equally, the businesses have mentioned, Indians devour content material throughout TV channels, social media and streaming apps, and advertisers is not going to be deprived by the deal.
“The traces are blurring (between TV and digital). Firms goal by demographics. If they do not like advert charges on the Disney-Reliance entity, they’ll all the time goal a client” elsewhere, mentioned the primary supply.
The deal is about to reshape India’s $28 billion media and leisure market, the place the Reliance-Disney combo will compete with Netflix, Amazon Prime, Zee Entertainment and Sony.
© Thomson Reuters 2024
(This story has not been edited by NDTV employees and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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