India’s antitrust body Competition Commission of India has made a big claim. The commission claims that if Reliance and Walt Disney merge, then the competitors will have to suffer huge losses. The merger of the two companies is to be worth $8.5 billion. Reuters has given this information quoting four sources.
According to ReuterscompetitionThe Commission of India believes that the companies have cricket broadcasting rights, due to which the competition can increase a lot. This can prove to be a big setback for the merger of both the companies. According to Reuters sources, the commission has asked Reliance and Disney that their merger should also be investigated. A source said in the report, “Cricket is the biggest problem for CCI.”
The proposed merger will see Reliance of Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani emerge as the majority owner, with cricket broadcasting rights worth billions of dollars. This has raised concerns about potential issues related to pricing power and the company’s influence over advertisers.
Antitrust experts had already warned that the merger, announced in February, could face strong scrutiny. The deal will create India’s largest entertainment entity, set to compete with Sony, Zee Entertainment, Netflix and Amazon with a combined portfolio of 120 TV channels and two streaming services.
The CCI had earlier asked Reliance and Disney about 100 questions about the merger. According to sources in the report released on Tuesday, the companies have proposed to sell less than ten television channels to address concerns about market power and expedite approval.
However, the companies have refused to make any concessions on cricket rights. They told the CCI that broadcast and streaming rights are set to expire in 2027 and 2028 and cannot be sold at this time. They also said that any attempt to sell these rights would require approval from the cricket board, which could delay the process.
