Entertainment: Zee to merge with Sony
New Delhi: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. (ZEEL) and Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) on Wednesday announced to merge their operations, digital assets, linear networks, and program libraries under an exclusive non-binary agreement.
The agreement entitles Sony India to 52.93 percent shares, with ZEEL founder Subhash Chandra receiving 2.1 percent shares, as a non-compete fee, while ZEEL will hold the remaining 49.17 percent shares of the merger, reports said.
Indian regulators SEBI and the Competition Commission of India (CCI) have approved the deal.
In FY21, Zee made a profit of Rs. 800 crore on revenues of Rs.7,730 crores, while Sony India earned Rs. 976 crore profit on revenues of Rs. 5,849 crores. The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) saw ZEEL shares jump to 31.86 percent to close at Rs.337.10 after the announcement.
This merger will create one of the largest Indian entertainment networks, with 75 channels catering to a global audience. At present, ZEEL consists of 49 channels and a reach of over 139 crore people in 173 countries while SPNI operates 26 channels with more than 700 crore viewers from 167 countries.
Zee has a stronghold in the film industry and regional channels whereas Sony is successful in the sports and Hindi general entertainment channel (GEC) segments. The merger serves as a tough competition against Star India and Disney Hotstar as Zee5 and SonyLiv come together in the digital space.
(Avya Mathur)
