Reliance, Walt Disney Initiates Antitrust Due Diligence Ahead Of Potential Merger - Report

As a mega merger between Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani”s Reliance Industries and Walt Disney”s Indian subsidiary Disney+Hotstar  is set to take place, both companies have started antitrust due diligence by appointing Indian law firms Khaitan & Co., Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas and AZB & Partners, respectively, Reuters reported, quoting company sources. Meanwhile, both companies have declined to comment on the matter.

The move is in the wake of concerns that any possible merger between Reliance and Disney is likely to create antitrust challenges and intense scrutiny, with other TV channels likely to shed assuage concerns of losing their combined market power, given that the potential merger would create an entertainment superpower in the world”s most populous nation with Ambai Group having majority shares.

Each company has a major streaming service as well as 120 television channels between them, and the Disney Hotstar app still owns the rights to the International Cricket Council”s matches in India until 2027, while Reliance”s JioCinema app has the rights to the IPL, which is a key area of antitrust scrutiny with their power over advertising during cricket, antitrust experts have told Reuters.

According to Reuters, senior Disney executives from Burbank headquarters and top Reliance officials from Mumbai travelled to London in late December and signed a non-binding term sheet on the deal. Currently, Ambani has emerged as a significant threat to Disney”s India business, as the former is offering free streaming of Indian Premier League cricket (IPL) tournaments, whose digital rights were once with Disney in India.