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.'
'This is a first-of-its-kind partnership in the Indian media & entertainment landscape, and this association with Disney Star reflects our sharp, strategic vision for the sports business India.'
Disney Star is mulling legal actions against Zee Entertainment for backing out from a $1.4 billion sub-licensing agreement for TV broadcast of international cricket matches in India, according to industry sources. This could brew another legal trouble for Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL), which is already facing an arbitration plea by Sony Group at the Singapore International Arbitration Centre, claiming $90 million for breach of conditions of their merger agreement. Disney Star, an Indian subsidiary of media conglomerate The Walt Disney Company, is working on its strategy over the development, said industry sources.
Under the deal, reportedly worth more than $250 million, international matches and the domestic Big Bash League for men and women will be beamed to India "and other territories across Asia" from the 2023-24 season.
95 per cent of advertising inventory has been sold on television and 18 on-air sponsors have been signed up so far, the highest for any season.
The business value of the league, popularly called the IPL, surged to a record $18.5 billion last year, U.S.-based investment bank Houlihan Lokey says.
Both sports and digital will drag down the healthy operating margins that entertainment television continues to make.
2026 looks promising for cinema lovers, with many highly anticipated, big-budget Hollywood films set to hit theatres this year.
Disney Star won the coveted IPL Indian sub-continent TV rights for a whopping Rs 23,575 crore, while Viacom18 grabbed the digital rights with a bid of Rs 20,500 crore at the media rights auction on Monday.
As Simon navigates auditions, rejection, and sudden attention, Wonder Man explores how power and celebrity intersect, often blurring the line between authenticity and performance.
Disney Star India, bought at a valuation of $15 billion, could be on the block for roughly one-third that amount.
Walt Disney Television International Asia Pacific on Friday signed a multi-year deal with the STAR group to distribute Disney Channel and Toon Disney Channel in India.
Shraddha Kapoor is ready to charm fans in a brand-new Disney venture, but with a twist.
'The whole narrative will change from TV is dying to TV-plus-digital is the future.'
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.
'I look forward to contributing to the next phase of cricket's evolution, expanding its global footprint, enhancing the fan experience, and working closely with ICC Member Boards to build on our strong foundations.'
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), Viacom18 Media (Viacom18), and The Walt Disney Company announced on Thursday that they have completed the merger of Viacom18's media and JioCinema businesses into Star India (SIPL), creating a mega joint venture valued at Rs 70,352 crore. The new entity will be guided by three chief executive officers (CEOs), "who will lead the company into a new era of ambition and disruption", according to a joint statement. Kevin Vaz will lead the entertainment division across all platforms, Kiran Mani will head the combined digital division, and Sanjog Gupta will oversee the sports operations.
IPL records highest ever TV viewership in first 10 matches, says official broadcaster
Joining Junaid Khan, Ibrahim Ali Khan and Khushi Kapoor is Suchitra Krishnamoorthy and Shekhar Kapur's daughter, Kaveri, who will make her acting debut with the film Bobby Aur Rishi Ki Love Story.
Disney Star creates new viewership record in high-voltage India Pak match
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has flagged possible anti-competitive concerns with respect to the proposed USD 8.5-billion Viacom18-Star India merger and has sought detailed responses from the parties concerned, sources said.
Billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries has completed the merger of its media assets with the India business of global media house Walt Disney and formed a joint venture with a valuation of over Rs 70,000 crore. The JV will be one of the largest media and entertainment companies in India with a combined revenue of approximately Rs 26,000 crore and will be led by Nita Ambani as its chairperson, according to a joint statement.
If you were one of those waiting for the entire fourth season of Succession to drop so that you could binge-watch it over a weekend, you have missed the train.
Dreamy and fabulously theatrical, the fabric that once ruled ballerina closets is now sweeping down red carpets and finding its way into celebrity wardrobes with renewed drama.
Here's a hint: She's the National Crush of India :)
With the acquisition of Hotstar, Disney gets immediate access to the OTT market.
The 17th edition of the Indian Premier League opened to blockbuster viewership numbers with 16.8 crore viewers tuning in to watch the season's first game between Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru on March 22, the tournament's official broadcaster said on Thursday.
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.
The state government has planned a formal felicitation ceremony at the iconic steps of the Vidhana Soudha.
'Advertising this season will help IPL surpass $550 million in ad revenues, across digital and pay TV.' 'It should still represent a steep loss against annualised 2023-2027 IPL rights fees of $1.2 billion.'
'Even if I had the backing of a big corporate house, which I don't, in today's market, I wouldn't want the responsibility of making a Rs 300 crore-Rs 400 crore film.'
Lakshmi Manchu, actress, producer and television presenter, will be among the contestants on Karan Johar's upcoming reality show, The Traitors.
JioStar, the newly formed joint venture by the merger of Viacom18 and Star India, on Friday announced the launch of JioHotstar by bringing together JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar streaming platforms. With close to 3 lakh hours of entertainment, live sports coverage, and more than 50 crore users, JioHotstar provides compelling subscription plans tailored to diverse audience needs, starting at Rs 149, the company said in a statement.
Analysts have given a thumbs up to the Reliance Industries (RIL) and Walt Disney Co. (Disney) proposed a joint venture (JV). The stock of the Mukesh Ambani-controlled company gained nearly 1.5 per cent on Thursday to Rs 2,952 levels as compared to the S&P BSE Sensex that traded marginally weak, down 0.2 per cent to 72,172 levels in intra-day trades.
Akshay Kumar's patriotism, Rana Naidu's fury, Snow White's fair and lovely attitude... emotions run high on OTT this week.
Disney-Star is positioning IPL as a "big-screen experience" where families and friends can come together over a game of cricket, much the way football is consumed in Europe and other parts of the world.
'As you're watching the IPL live, there's a conscious effort to showcase the entertainment portfolio.'
The subscriber count made JioHotstar one of the largest OTT platforms in the world.
Reliance-Disney skips bidding
Lights, camera, ACTION, you'll find them in heaps on OTT this week. Sukanya Verma lists some interesting options.
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