Uday Shankar to enter Viacom18
Mukesh Ambani’s media venture is in advanced talks for a stake sale to the investment firm operated by the former Star India chief.
Why read this story?
Editor's note: For a few weeks now, billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s media venture Viacom18 has been working on a deal to sell a part of the company. And the possible buyer is the investment firm operated by one of India’s most influential media executives Uday Shankar, two people aware of the development confirmed. The talks are at an advanced stage and the process of due diligence has been on for weeks, a third executive added. More importantly, Shankar is coming on board to play a key role in the operations of the company and will not just be an investor. Viacom18 is one of the larger media and entertainment firms in India. At the moment, the company runs 46 television channels in eight languages, a video streaming service called Voot, a film studio, a consumer products vertical and a live events vertical. The company is a joint venture between Reliance Industries-owned TV18 Broadcast Ltd and the American media conglomerate ViacomCBS Inc. (formerly Viacom Inc.); TV18, whose immediate holding company is Network18 Media and Investments, owns 51% of this venture. On the other hand, …
More in Business
You may also like
Conglomerates, duopolies and domination hamper India
The domination of a few business groups—conglomerates—is a defining feature of the country’s economy. This has been enabled by policy, leading to stifled innovation and hindered progress. All of this, in turn, exacerbates inequalities.
Anil Ambani owes his gravy train ride to apathy, leniency
Multiple institutions have failed in their duty to pursue the litany of cases against Ambani and his companies. This has facilitated a comeback that should never have been
How Reliance’s $180 million bet on Embibe came to naught
The edtech company was supposed to be the conglomerate’s answer to India’s education crisis. Seven years and $180 million later, the AI-powered startup has quietly vanished into corporate obscurity.
