Disney Star, Viacom18 on a slow start this IPL season as most companies tighten ad budgets
The media-buying head of another firm said the number of clients spending on IPL has seen a decline, prompting Disney Star and Viacom18 to lower their sponsorship outlays. The subdued market has forced Disney Star to lower the sponsorship outlays by 30-40%, the person said. Key Points
Economic TimesDisney Star, Viacom18 to fight it out on IPL ad pitch amid merger talks
Disney Star and Viacom18 are competing for advertising dollars in IPL 2024. They are also in non-binding merger talks. Disney Star seeks sponsorships for SD and HD channels, with spot buy rates of '12.8 lakh and '5.45 lakh per 10 seconds. Key Points
Economic TimesIPL opening weekend: JioCinema gets over 14.7 mn video views, 50 mn new app downloads
Reliance-backed Viacom18 on Monday said its app JioCinema had clocked over 14.7 million video views for the first weekend of the Indian Premier League, with new app downloads at 50 million. Key Points
FinancialexpressRIL, Viacom18 and Disney complete merger to create a Rs 70,352 cr JV
Reliance Industries Limited, Viacom18, and The Walt Disney Company have finalized the merger of Viacom18's media and JioCinema businesses with Star India. The newly formed venture, valued at approximately US$8.5 billion, brings together popular brands like 'Star', 'Colors', 'JioCinema', and 'Hotstar' under a single umbrella. Key Points
Economic TimesParamount in Talks to Sell India TV Stake to Ambani’s Reliance
Paramount Global is in discussions to sell its stake in its media joint venture in India to Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd., according to people familiar with the matter, as Asia’s richest man continues to consolidate his clout in one of the world’s fastest-growing entertainment markets. Key Points
mint
IPL ad revenues drop as media rights get divided
Ad revenues for the 16th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) have dropped to a combined INR30bn ($402m) from the previous season?s INR46bn haul. TV rights holder Disney Star and streaming rights owner Viacom18 are both lagging behind their respective targets, with only INR30bn worth of deals inked so far. Last season, Star Sports earned INR31bn in ad revenues, while its arm Disney+Hotstar booked sponsorships and advertising worth INR15bn. This year, Star Sports has signed 13 sponsors and Viacom18 has 21 sponsors on board. Key Points
mintIPL 2023: Mukesh Ambani streams Indian Premier League games for free after paying $2.7 Billion
Viacom18 Media Pvt., the joint venture between Paramount Global and Ambani’s conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd., licensed the IPL streaming rights last year for $2.7 billion Key Points
The Indian ExpressIPL final watched by 12 crore viewers on JioCinema: Viacom18
The company added that JioCinema set a new world record as the final match had a peak concurrency of 3.21 crore viewers. JioCinema registered over 1700 crore video views through the 16th edition. Viacom18 said JioCinema registered over 2.5 crore downloads, which is a record for the most installed app in a single day. The platform registered an average time spent of more than 60 minutes per viewer per match. Key Points
Economic TimesWarner Bros, HBO content will soon be available on Reliance Jio Cinema
The deal between Reliance's Viacom18 would see Warner Bros as well as its HBO content becoming available on Reliance's JioCinema app, including popular shows such as Succession, Game of Thrones and the upcoming Harry Potter series. The partnership will be exclusive and see most of Warner's marquee content on the JioCinema platform. Warner cannot offer most of its popular titles to other Indian rivals including Amazon Prime Video and Disney Hotstar, said one of the sources. Key Points
Economic TimesKevin Vaz joins Viacom 18 as CEO of TV business
Kevin's mandate will be to drive the company's overall TV business, which comprises almost 38 channels across multiple genres including general entertainment, movies, regional, and kids. In addition to this, he will also spearhead the regional content and marketing for the digital business. Key Points
Economic Times
Reliance and Disney finally complete transaction to form JV of top entertainment brands
The Reliance-Disney merger has established the leading media and entertainment conglomerate in India. The combined entity will feature more than 100 TV channels and two streaming platforms. Key Points
Business TodayJioCinema set to disrupt SVOD market with Rs 29 per month subscription pack
Viacom18's JioCinema is shifting to a hybrid monetization model, placing Indian GEC and movie content behind a paywall at Rs 30/month or Rs 300/year. Live sports remain free. The move aims to boost revenue, leveraging IPL for rollout. Post-COI approval, JioCinema's merger into Viacom18 aims to fortify its OTT presence. Key Points
Economic TimesReliance comments on potential merger deal with Disney, here's what it said
Reliance Industries issued a statement on stock exchanges, refusing to comment on media speculation about its reported merger deal with Disney. The clarification mentioned the company's ongoing evaluation of opportunities, stating that there is no undisclosed information requiring disclosure under SEBI regulations. The reported merger between Viacom18 and Star India under Reliance's media unit and Disney's stake is anticipated to create India's largest media empire Key Points
Economic TimesViacom18 and Star India merger talks in advanced stage
Reliance could hold more than 51% of the shareholding in the proposed Star-Viacom18 merged entity, with Disney owning a 40% stake, one of the people said. Uday Shankar and James Murdoch-promoted Bodhi Tree Systems' stake in the merged entity could be 7-9%.Another person said Reliance is anticipated to inject additional capital in the merged entity, establishing it as a direct subsidiary. Key Points
Economic TimesBroadcasters hike prices of channel bouquets on rising content expenses
Broadcasters have increased their prices for the second time following the implementation of NTO 3.0 by the TRAI in November 2022. The TV channel prices were frozen for nearly three years before February 2023 due to an impasse over the implementation of NTO 2.0. The price hike in February 2023 followed a dispute between broadcasters and cable TV companies, resulting in broadcasters switching off TV signals to cable TV operators. Key Points
Economic Times
James Murdoch's Bodhi Tree slashes planned investment in Reliance JV Viacom18 by 70% to Rs 4,306 crore
Bodhi Tree, a joint venture between James Murdoch and a former Star India executive, has reduced its planned investment in Reliance's broadcast venture Viacom18 by 70%, investing Rs 4,306 crore ($527.84 million). Reliance Industries will lead the investment with a Rs 10,839 crore infusion. Key Points
Economic Times