Reliance Industries has allegedly inked a “binding pact” for a merger deal with Walt Disney‘s local unit, Bloomberg News disclosed on Monday, signaling a significant upheaval in India’s multi-billion dollar entertainment sector. With India already boasting one of the world’s largest entertainment markets, the anticipated merger could spawn a formidable entertainment behemoth.
According to Bloomberg’s report, billionaire tycoon Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries, is gearing up to host Disney chief Robert Iger on March 1 for his son’s wedding in Gujarat. The deal is purportedly set to grant the media unit of Reliance and its affiliates a majority stake of at least 61% in the merged entity, with Disney retaining the remainder.
As of now, neither Disney nor Reliance has issued an immediate response regarding the reported merger pact.
Disney has faced significant scrutiny since the departure of Robert Iger, who was later reinstated from semi-retirement over a year ago due to the underperformance of his successor.
Mr. Ambani, ranked as the world’s 10th-richest individual by Forbes, is preparing to host an illustrious guest list for his son Anant Ambani’s wedding to Radhika Merchant, the daughter of an industrialist, from March 1-3. The attendees include influential businessmen, politicians, tech moguls like Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, and Shantanu Narayen, as well as luminaries from Bollywood and cricket.
Notably, the cancellation of a proposed $10 billion merger between Zee Entertainment and the local unit of Japanese conglomerate Sony last month, reportedly due to leadership disputes, underscores the complexities involved in such mega-deals within the Indian entertainment landscape.
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