Disney and conglomerate Reliance Industries are combining their India media operations into a joint venture, the Dow Jones entertainment giant announced Wednesday. Disney stock rose slightly toward a buy point Wednesday.
Per the deal, Disney's Star India and Reliance's Viacom18 will combine in a joint venture valued at $8.5 billion. Reliance will invest $1.4 billion into the venture while Disney will provide a content license and "may also contribute certain additional media assets to the JV, subject to regulatory and third-party approvals," Disney wrote in the announcement.
Once the deal is completed, Disney will own 36.84% of the joint venture, Viacom18 will own 46.82% and Reliance will own 16.34%.
Nita Ambani, founder and chair of the Reliance Foundation, will chair the joint venture. Former Walt Disney exec Uday Shankar will serve as vice chairperson and provide strategic guidance.
The joint venture will include streaming entertainment and sports content platforms, and include media assets such as Colors, StarPlus, Star Sports and Sports18, as well as the JioCinema and Hotstar platforms. The venture will also be granted exclusive rights to distribute Disney films and productions in India, with a license for more than 30,000 Disney content assets. Disney says the new JV will have over 750 million viewers across India.
"India is the world's most populous market, and we are excited for the opportunities that this joint venture will provide to create long-term value for the company," Disney CEO Bob Iger said. "Reliance has a deep understanding of the Indian market and consumer, and together we will create one of the country's leading media companies, allowing us to better serve consumers with a broad portfolio of digital services and entertainment and sports content."
Disney Stock Today
Disney stock rose 1.3% Wednesday following the announcement. DIS stock is trading below a 112.92 buy point for a cup-with-handle base.
Shares rallied 14.3% this month and are up nearly 23% this year.
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