A merger of India's Zee and a domestic unit of Japan's Sony Group Corp will create a television powerhouse to grab more advertising revenue, challenging top rival Walt Disney Co in a key growth market, industry officials said.
The Sony-Zee alliance, with about 75 news, entertainment, sports and movie channels in more than 10 languages, stands to become India's biggest player, with a market share of 27% outstripping that of Disney's Star India, at 24%.
Wednesday's plan, to be finalised over 90 days of exclusive talks, will see Sony pump growth capital to the tune of $1.6 billion into its domestic unit to boost the prospects of the combined firm, while taking a majority stake in Zee. Disney, whose Star India network has dozens of popular entertainment and sports channels, did not respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
The proposed deal aims to unite their networks, digital assets, production operations and program libraries, the firms have said.
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