Disney-Reliance Deal: Reliance Industries that is in talks with Walt Disney to buy its India operations is likely to face a hurdle as both the companies aim for different valuations, reported Economic Times.
As per Bloomberg, Reliance Industries is eyeing a $3-$4 billion valuation while Disney is aiming for a valuation of $10 billion.
The report by Economic Times mentions that a drop in the paid subscriber base of Disney+ Hotstar and mounting losses from the sports business coupled with the overall decline in the pay-TV ecosystem are acting against Disney Star.
Also Read: Disney-Reliance multibillion dollar deal to finalise: Report
As per Walt Disney's regulatory filing its sports business in India reported an operating loss of $444 million for the nine-month period ended July 1.
Earlier media reports claimed that once the deal is finalised, a few Reliance owned media units will merge with Disney Sta and the acquisition is likely to be declared by the companies next month.
Though Disney Star has seen declining subscriber numbers after losing the IPL streaming rights, it hasn’t ceded the entire cricket business, securing the television rights through 2027. Last year it agreed to license the TV rights for International Cricket Council men’s matches to ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. for four years, with Disney+ Hotstar retaining the digital rights.
Meanwhile, JioCinema recorded a total of 32 million concurrent viewers in May for the IPL final which was free to watch. However after signing a multi-year pact to stream Warner Bros Discovery Inc.’s exclusive content in India, the platform has begun charging for those content