Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance buys 51% stake of Star India, what does it mean for Cricket broadcasting in India? 

This deal could see the merger become the largest media house in India, with over 100 channels and 2 popular OTT platforms.

Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance buys 51% stake of Star India, what does it mean for Cricket broadcasting in India? 

Mukesh Ambani (Image via X)

Reliance Industries Limited has signed a non-binding term sheet to purchase 51% of Disney-Star India, which is owned by The Walt Disney Conglomerate. The media house has channels for various segments, like news, entertainment and sports. Although the term sheet was signed in December, the two companies will look to complete the deal by February. 

Star India will be a step down subsidiary of RIL’s Viacom 18, which they will absorb soon. RIL will own 51% of the media house, with Disney being a minority stakeholder. They were in talks with The Adani Group and Sun Group, but decided to negotiate with RIL. According to the Economic Times, the deal was negotiated for months before the two giants reached common ground. 

With this merger, Star-Viacom18 will become the largest media house in India, with there already being a combined 108 channels. Along with that, OTT apps like Disney+Hotstar and JioCinema also come into play. 

How does this merger affect cricket broadcasting? 

As of now, there are three major players in Cricket Broadcasting in India, They are Star, Viacom and Sony Sports. While Viacom18 owns the rights for Indian cricket, Star has the television rights for the Indian Premier League. Along with that, Star owns the rights for Australian Cricket, South African Cricket and also has the rights for all ICC events till 2023. After that, all ICC events will be broadcasted by Zee Entertainment Enterprise, as Disney licensed it to them. 

Reliance
BCCI logo (Image via X)

With this merger, RIL and Viacom 18 could look at complete monopoly of cricket broadcasting in India. The only other competitor, Sony Sports, only has the rights for England Cricket and Pakistan cricket. Although Sony could broadcast all ICC events due to a merger with ZEE, Disney will retain the digital rights. 

In case you missed: