The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Wednesday (August 28, 2024) provisionally approved the ₹70,350 crore combination involving Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL) and its units Viacom18 Media Private Limited (Viacom18), Digital18 Media Limited with The Walt Disney Co.’s (TWDC) Star India Private Ltd. (SIPL) and Star Television Productions Ltd.(STPL), “subject to the compliance of voluntary modifications,” the antitrust watchdog said in a press release.
A detailed order has not yet been released, and it is not clear what the concessions are, though Reuters reported last week that Reliance offered concessions like a commitment to avoid “unreasonable” rate increases for advertisements during cricket matches.
“As a result of the transaction, SIPL, currently a wholly owned entity of TWDC through its subsidiaries, shall become a joint venture (JV) which will be jointly held by RIL, Viacom18 and existing TWDC subsidiaries,” the CCI said.
The combination would lead to a massive consolidation of television and streaming in India, with the Jefferies Group estimating that the combined joint venture would control about 40% of the streaming and TV advertising market. The merger would also lead to consolidation of cricket broadcasting — currently, Indian Premier League rights are split between Star and Viacom18 for TV and streaming, and the former has the rights to certain tournaments aside from the IPL.
In addition to JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar, Viacom18 and Disney together account for some 120 TV channels.
(With inputs from Reuters)
