Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance in Talks to Acquire 30% Stake in Tata Play from Walt Disney: Report

Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance in Talks to Acquire 30% Stake in Tata Play from Walt Disney: Report

The newspaper stated that Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries is in talks to acquire about 30 percent of Tata Play, previously Tata Sky, from its merger partner Walt Disney, just weeks before the mega-merger is finalized. Reliance Industries has expressed interest in acquiring Tata Play, which is now owned by Disney, for about 29.8% of the company. This would be the first joint venture between the Tata Group and the billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s company if the negotiations are successful.

According to the article, JioCinema may benefit greatly from this partnership between Tata Group and Mukesh Ambani, possibly providing all of its streaming content to Tata Play subscribers. At the moment, Walt Disney owns roughly 30% of Tata Play, while Tata Sons owns the remainder of 50.2% of the company. The remaining portion is held by the Singaporean fund Temasek.

Disney had originally intended to sell its stake in Tata Play at the DTH company’s initial public offering (IPO), but the listing was delayed. Disney is therefore looking for more ways to leave the company. According to the article, bankers are presently appraising Disney’s ownership of Tata Play, which provides access to video streaming outlets. But Disney, Tata Play, and Reliance have not yet commented on this. Reliance wants to gain more traction in India’s $28 billion media and entertainment sector. Through its media unit Viacom18, the company operates many TV channels and the JioCinema streaming app.

As OTT platforms continue to grow, Tata Play has been finding it difficult to maintain its position in the DTH market. After making ₹68.6 crore in profit in the fiscal year 2023, Tata Play announced a loss of ₹105 crore, or roughly $13 million. Over that same time, its sales decreased by 5%. Tata Play submitted documents for a ₹2,490 crore initial public offering (IPO) in 2023, but the listing has to be delayed, according to the report.

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Disney-Reliance merger details

As per Reuters earlier this month, Reliance is on the verge of integrating its media business in India with Disney, wherein it will hold a 51%-54% interest. Reliance is still the most valuable firm in India, valued at around ₹20 lakh crore, but the deal puts the American behemoth’s activities in India at $3.5 billion. Previous reports said that the combination would become one of the biggest media companies in India by the end of February. Additionally, this would alter the landscape of sports streaming rights in India and allow Reliance to obtain exclusive rights to cricket across all formats.