With less than a month to go, football fans have all fingers -- and toes -- crossed, notes Kanika Datta.
Only firms that have scale in content and a technology engine that drives its discovery and monetisation can compete,' explains Vanita Kohli Khandekar.
Assume Voot, JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar are merged into one entertainment app, and you have a streaming service with more than 233 million unique visitors. That is a reach just under half of India's largest streaming app: YouTube. 'This level of consolidation does not exist even in the US.'
As Simon navigates auditions, rejection, and sudden attention, Wonder Man explores how power and celebrity intersect, often blurring the line between authenticity and performance.
Walt Disney Co and Reliance Industries on Wednesday announced signing of binding pacts to merge their media operations in India to create a Rs 70,000 crore behemoth. Reliance and its affiliates will hold 63.16 per cent in the combined entity while Disney will hold the remaining 36.84 per cent, the companies said in a statement.
Competition Commission of India on Wednesday said it has approved the merger of the media assets of Reliance Industries and Walt Disney Co to create the country's largest media empire. The deal, announced six months ago, has been cleared by the CCI with certain modifications proposed by the two parties.
The Critics Choice Awards was held at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica and saw Hollywood's A-listers get honoured at the first awards ceremony of the year.
'The whole narrative will change from TV is dying to TV-plus-digital is the future.'
Paramount Global has agreed to sell its 13 per cent stake in its Indian TV business to Reliance Industries for Rs 4,286 crore, the Indian firm said on Thursday. In a stock exchange filing, Reliance said it has signed a binding agreement with two subsidiaries of Paramount Global to acquire 13.01 per cent equity stake of Viacom 18 Media Private Limited held by Paramount Global. Similarly, in a filing on the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Paramount Global said the closing of the transaction is subject to the satisfaction of certain customary conditions, including receipt of applicable regulatory approvals, as well as the completion of a previously announced joint venture involving Reliance, Viacom18 and Star Disney.
Having established its licensing business for a decade, it is tapping real estate to build on its themes.
With the acquisition of Hotstar, Disney gets immediate access to the OTT market.
'Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Crunchyroll, and Disney+ Hotstar are continuously expanding their Anime libraries.'
'In the audience's mind there is no urgency to go see a film in the theatre.' 'If you pay for social media buzz it does not convert into bums on seats.'
In a significant move, entertainment giant The Walt Disney Company plans to buy longtime partner Pixar Animation Studios Inc for $7.4 billi
A non-strategic investor like Poonawalla brings in not only capital but also creative freedom. Indian cinema needs more investors like him, reports Vanita Kohli Khandekar.
Fox shareholders will receive 0.2745 Disney shares for each share held.
'What is Balaji without Ekta (Kapoor), what is Dharma without Karan (Johar?)'
Siddharth Roy Kapur's RKF aims to raise around $50 million by offering up to a 50 per cent stake in the company.
Non-fiction continues to grow with the most-watched unscripted show, Bigg Boss OTT S3 getting more than half the viewership that Panchayat (S3) got.
There is a lot more to Bollywood than the unguarded glimpses Showtime offers, observes Deepa Gahlot.
Siddharth Roy Kapur will take charge as managing director of the Walt Disney Company India from January 1.
Industry experts believe that this deal will positively impact the Indian film industry, which is struggling with fewer movie releases.
Culver Max Entertainment, formerly known as Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI), has terminated merger agreements with Zee Entertainment, which could have otherwise created a USD 10 billion media enterprise in the country.
'Since God was being shown in live action on such a large scale, Prasanth was initially sceptical about going with an animated character.'
The stars Rediff.com Contributing Photographer Pradeep Bandekar sighted over the weekend.
Zee and Star, the two largest media companies in India, are undergoing some radical ownership changes. What could it mean? Vanita Kohli Khandekar attempts an answer.
Janhvi goes traditional... Rashmika meets Vikas Bahl... Aditya promotes his film...
Prime was the first to grab streaming rights for seven titles for an estimated Rs 300 crore.
Netflix is reminiscent of Star TV in the 1990s: Very Western in its gaze, very expensive, and clueless, notes Vanita Kohli-Khandekar.
The marketing spiel for the Hindi version has been around Shah Rukh Khan's inclusion as Pride Rock's patriarch and his son Aryan Khan's debut as Simba's voice.
Poor policymaking, a fractious industry and the cockeyed nature of regulations are to blame, saya Vanita Kohli-Khandekar.
Kangana Ranaut plays an Air Force pilot in Tejas, joining an increasing list of films and shows centered around women playing significant roles in their careers.
Global studios and indie content shops tap into the growing fan base for movie and TV characters in India, report Arundhuti Dasgupta & Urvi Malvania.
'There is so much talk about Netflix and what they should be doing.' 'In two years, SonyLIV has done what Netflix should be doing.'
From hardselling a dream house next to the London Tower Bridge to eyeing tourism and business opportunity at Universal Studios and Disney Destinations; from drawing target customers for Macau casinos to launching travel guides tailored just for the well-heeled in India, global industry majors are rushing in to tap the increasing spending power of the people in this country.
More Indians are watching films across screens, TV, online and other platforms than ever before. Whether it is by tackling costs, processes or revenues, the trick is to find a way of making money from all of them, says Vanita Kohli-Khandekar.
'If you look at the Number 1 film in India this year across Bollywood and other regional film industries, it is Avengers: Endgame.'
Leading media firms Zee Entertainment and Sony Pictures on Wednesday said they have received in-principle approval for a merger that will combine both companies' linear networks, digital assets, production operations and programme libraries.
If Indian storytelling can deliver, it can make the entertainment industry an engine of economic growth and a substantial contributor to GDP, says Vanita Kohli-Khandekar.
'This is the best time to do a pan-Indian film.'
