RIL-Disney to not Bundle Cricket Ad Slots and will Divest Seven Channels

In order to address the antitrust regulator's concerns regarding a $8.5 billion merger of their media assets in the nation, Reliance Industries and Walt Disney will divest seven TV channels, including Star Jalsha Movies, Colors Marathi, and Hungama, and refrain from combining TV and OTT ad slots for important cricket matches.

In accordance with the comprehensive order issued by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Tuesday, the companies will also give their promoters voting rights in Eenadu Television (ETPL).

According to other sources, the merger of Walt Disney's Star India and Reliance's Viacom18 is scheduled to be finalized in early November. Nita Ambani will serve as the merged company's chair, while Uday Shankar would serve as its vice-chair.

Subject to voluntary changes made by the firms, the anti-trust regulator on August 28 approved the merger of Viacom18, Digital18, and Star India, which is expected to become India's largest entertainment player. The changes were laid out in a 48-page ruling on Tuesday.

According to the CCI, the parties have freely decided not to combine TV commercial spots for cricketing rights for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the International Cricket Council (ICC), and the Indian Premier League (IPL) during the duration of the current rights. In order to allay worries about competition in the advertising industry, they will not combine the sales of OTT ad slots for these rights. "Additionally, the parties will not bundle together ad slot sales for IPL on TV and IPL on OTT for the balance tenure of the existing rights," the document stated.

Disney will own 37% and Reliance 56% of the combined company, with Bodhi Tree Systems holding the remaining 7%.

The parties have pledged that until they retain the current rights, they would not increase the ICC and IPL event advertising rates on their TV and streaming platforms to an unreasonably high level.

Additionally, Star Jalsha Movies and Star Jalsha Movies HD (run by Star India in the Bengali cinema channel sub-segment) would be unloaded as part of the terms; In the Kannada sub-segment, Viacom18 operates Colors Marathi and Colors Marathi HD, as well as Colors Super. The decision was made because the businesses currently control more than 40% of the market for Marathi, Bengali, Kannada, and children's content. For a minimum of five years, the parties are unable to purchase any shares or exert any influence on the channels that have been divested.

Disney+ Hotstar, the streaming service that will be retained by the combined company, is anticipated to stream the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2025.

According to a source who asked not to be named, "Most of the formalities for the merger have been finalized, and the combined entity under Star India is set to take effect on November 7," though the date may change somewhat.

The CCI, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) have all approved the merger, which was announced on February 28 and was finished in a record eight months.

Kevin Vaz and Kiran Mani are expected to be co-CEOs, managing a staff of over 8,000 workers, however the process of assembling the leadership is still ongoing.

However, according to reports, the merger might result in some personnel rationalization because of redundancies. Mani will be in charge of the sports division, and Vaz is anticipated to head the entertainment division.