Key Players (OTT) Mega Merge: Jio Cinema & Disney + Hotstar

Is Reliance Buying Disney + Hotstar or As a, Merger On The Cards?

There is buzz that something is cooking up between Reliance Industries Ltd ( RIL) & The Walt Disney Company ( Disney ). What's the latest development on this front? A lot of people are looking at this situation expecting something major is going to take place. Let's find out more about it from this article. Reliance Group will hold a 63% stake in the new company and Disney will own the rest. This merger will bring together 120 TV Channels owned by the two conglomerates, as well as India's two most significant streaming apps i.e. Disney + Hotstar and Reliance Jio Cinema. 

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RIL has signed a binding agreement with The Walt Disney Company ( Disney). The idea is to form a Joint Venture  ( JV) which in turn will combine the businesses of Viacom 18 & Star India. This JV will facilitate Disney providing a content license to the JV & RIL will invest Rs 11,500 crore in the JV. RIL will control the JV.

Key Players Mega Merge: Jio Cinema & Disney + Hotstar

What's the benefit of this move? You must be wondering about this question. This strategic move brings the two conglomerates one step closer which will lead to a mega merger between RIL & Disney Star with Jio Cinema & Disney + Hotstar expected to be the key players. It will lead to an extensive OTT platform in India. It will also grant access to premium content from HBO and Warner Boss and will boast the rights to Cricketing & Football streaming. So it could be a game changer when it comes to offering quality entertainment service adding to a superior viewing experience of the audience.

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What will be the likely outcome of such a merger? Is it seriously going to impact the entertainment industry and offer better viewing experiences to the audience? Numerous questions are being asked and are doing the rounds. You need to get into the details in order to draw your conclusion as far as this merger is concerned.

First up, you have to take into consideration the fact that in this era of digital medium or digital age traditional television viewing is bound to undergo plenty of changes and accordingly things need to be aligned as well. The choice of audience and their expectations are no longer the same. They want the best of services and viewing experience and no compromise on this front is expected by the audience. To add to your knowledge we must incorporate the fact that the Competition Commission of India has approved the Disney + Hotstar merger with JioCinema.

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Upgrading services, offering quality entertainment, and retaining viewers alongside adding more viewer base will enable any company to sustain, survive, and prosper in the present-day entertainment industry. These facts can't be ignored. Cutthroat competition is experienced in the entertainment industry by various companies. They have to come up with new strategies to keep their position intact failing which they will disappear in no time. The writing is on the wall & is crystal clear. Perform or perish. Upgrade or get eliminated from the scene. So RIL is taking all the measures and adopting strategies that will yield good result. It is likely to be a win-win situation for both RIL and viewers.

Some Major Benefits of Reliance Buying Hotstar is Stated Below

• By acquiring Hotstar, Reliance would be able to spread its wings further in the entertainment industry. This will lead to superior content offerings which will be pretty difficult for other OTT platforms to match. Seamless content delivery will be possible owing to this deal and it is going to create the largest content library.
• Does it mean this deal doesn't have any weaknesses or demerits? You need to think again especially, if you are of the opinion this is the best deal having absolutely no weakness.
• It can create a monopoly of sorts eliminating or limiting competition which is perhaps not very healthy. Price hikes may be experienced by subscribers which is something the audience will never appreciate. Content homogenization is another possibility that cannot be ruled out. This can hamper creativity and diversity especially when we talk about variety in content delivery.

Conclusion

This deal or acquisition by Reliance seems good in a lot of ways however, it is not pinpoint perfect. Why so? It possesses certain demerits, as stated above in this article. It will end up enhancing the range and reach of Reliance, but again if it leads to content monopoly then it can't be construed as an ideal situation for the viewers and perhaps for the entertainment industry as a whole. Overall it appears to be a fairly good deal having the potential to change the various facets of the entertainment industry and from viewers' point of view, there is plenty to look forward to which is always a welcome step.

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