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☆ Nita Ambani is now the most powerful woman in Indian media
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Diksha Madhok | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New Delhi CNN —Just a few months ago, Nita Ambani stepped away from frontline business to focus on philanthropy. Now, the wife of Asia’s richest man is back with the biggest job in the ferociously competitive world of India media. Nita Ambani will not be steering the media giant alone. Nita Ambani first stepped into the business limelight 10 years ago, becoming the first woman director on the board of Reliance Industries. With her new job title, Nita Ambani has become the most powerful woman in Indian media and entertainment sector, which is worth over $25 billion and growing rapidly.

Persons: New Delhi CNN —, Nita Ambani, Mukesh Ambani, Uday Shankar, “, ”, Ambani’s, Nita Mukesh Ambani, Bikas Das, —, Isha, Anant, Akash —, Akash, ” Nita Ambani, National Stock Exchange —, EY, Mihir Shah Organizations: New, New Delhi CNN, Disney’s, Reliance Industries, Disney’s Asia, Disney, Reliance Foundation, Indian Premier League, IPL, Reliance, Music, International Olympic Committee, Metropolitan Museum of Art, National Stock Exchange, Media Partners, Netflix Locations: New Delhi, India, Mumbai, Disney India, New York, Viacom18

☆ Disney, Ambani’s Reliance create new India media giant with 750 million viewers
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Diksha Madhok | Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New Delhi/London CNN —Disney is joining forces with Asia’s richest man to create a new media giant in India that says it will reach a domestic audience of more than 750 million people. Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries and Disney have combined their digital streaming platforms and 100 TV channels in the country in a joint venture worth about $8.5 billion, the companies said in a statement Wednesday. Disney (DIS) made a major push into the country in 2019, when it acquired most of 21st Century Fox, including its vast Star India network. “India is the world’s most populous market, and we are excited for the opportunities that this joint venture will provide to create long-term value for the company,” said Disney CEO Bob Iger. Disney salvaging its Indian dreamDisney has faced multiple challenges in India, which boasts a vibrant media and entertainment sector.

Persons: Mukesh, ”, Mukesh Ambani, Nita M, Ambani, Viacom18, Bob Iger, Mouse, Weeks, JioCinema, Iger, “, Mihir Shah Organizations: London CNN, Disney, Reliance Industries, Century Fox, Star, Reliance, Indian Premier League, Warner Bros ., HBO, CNN, Media Partners Locations: New Delhi, London, India, Star India, Viacom18

A billboard for the Netflix film "Thar" is seen on a street in Mumbai, India, May 19, 2022. India last month introduced the new draft law to regulate the broadcasting sector that will also apply to streaming giants. Netflix and Viacom18, as well as India's Information and Broadcasting Ministry, which has proposed the law, did not respond to a request for comment. India's government says the new law and formation of content committees will help in "robust self-regulation". Top Bollywood stars feature in Indian streaming shows, some of which have faced criticism from lawmakers and the public for scenes deemed vulgar or offensive.

Persons: Francis Mascarenhas, Mukesh Ambani's Viacom18, Aditya Kalra, Munsif Vengattil, Emelia Sithole Organizations: Netflix, REUTERS, DELHI, Broadcasting Ministry, Disney, Media Partners Asia, Thomson Locations: Mumbai, India

[1/2] JioCinema and Pokemon logos are pictured in this illustration taken November 15, 2023. Pokemon has spawned a global multi-billion dollar media franchise spanning trading cards, games, TV shows and movies. In total, JioCinema will add around 3,000 hours of children's content, including movies and shows from Entertainment One, Animaccord, Cartoon Network Studios and DreamWorks, the sources said. Some Pokemon content was earlier on Voot, but the new JioCinema deal is a "much larger partnership", one of the sources said. NBCUniversal told Reuters that "kids and family programming", including DreamWorks content, was part of a multi-year partnership with JioCinema announced in May.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Mukesh Ambani, Mukesh Ambani's, Ambani, Viacom18, NBCUniversal, JioCinema, Aditya Kalra, Munsif, Miral Organizations: REUTERS, Disney, Netflix, Cartoon Network, DreamWorks, Pokemon Company, Walt Disney Co, Nintendo, Media Partners, Entertainment, Cartoon Network Studios, Reuters, Warner Bros Discovery Inc, Hollywood, Thomson Locations: DELHI, India, New Delhi, Bengaluru

A billboard for the Netflix film "Thar" is seen on a street in Mumbai, India, May 19, 2022. "Every broadcaster or broadcasting network operator must establish a Content Evaluation Committee (CEC) with members from various social groups," stated the draft law document, which is open for public consultation for 30 days. The proposal however comes at a time of increasing scrutiny of streaming companies in India over content-related issues. Under the new proposed law, the federal government "can define the CEC's size, quorum, and operational details" and only those shows shall be broadcast that are "duly certified" by such a committee, the draft law stated. The law will also provide powers to the government to regulate any online creator or news media platform, Gupta added.

Persons: Francis Mascarenhas, Anurag Thakur, Apar Gupta, Gupta, Aditya Kalra, David Evans Organizations: Netflix, REUTERS, Disney, Media Partners, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Mumbai, India, DELHI, New Delhi

☆ The future of advertising lies in the online space: Media Partners Asia
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailThe future of advertising lies in the online space: Media Partners AsiaVivek Couto, Executive Director & Co-Founder at Media Partners Asia, says that companies are becoming more "rational" on marketing and content investments.

Persons: Vivek Couto Organizations: Media Partners, Media Partners Asia

But Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani snatched IPL rights away in a $2.9 billion bid last year, and then streamed games for free. Soon, Disney subscribers fled - out of 61 million users in October, roughly 21 million had left by July. It retains digital streaming rights but last year licensed the TV broadcast rights to Indian's Zee Entertainment (ZEE.NS) for around $1.5 billion, a source said. In the United States, ad-free Disney+ streaming service subscription rates are set to rise by 27% to $13.99 per month. By contrast in India, Disney+ Hotstar service costs $3.62 a month.

Persons: Anushree, India's Ambani Hotstar, Walt Disney, Disney, Mukesh Ambani, That's, JioCinema, Sivanandan, Daoud Jackson, Bob Iger's, Nancy Lee, Ambani, Aditya Kalra, Munsif, Dawn Chmielewski, Muralikumar Organizations: ICC Men's Cricket, REUTERS, Companies Disney India, Century Fox, Indian Premier League, Disney, Reuters, Asia, Cricket, Indian's Zee Entertainment, IPL, Blume Ventures, Hotstar, Staff, Media Partners, Netflix, JioCinema, Thomson Locations: Gurugram, India, Burbank, Disney India, United States, New Delhi, Bengaluru, Dawn, Los Angeles

NEW DELHI, July 27 (Reuters) - Walt Disney's (DIS.N) India streaming service plans to start enforcing a policy of allowing its premium users to login from only four devices, an effort aimed at limiting password sharing in a key market, two sources with direct knowledge said. In India, a premium account of Disney+ Hotstar streaming service still allows logins on as many as 10 devices, even though its website currently says "number of devices that can be logged in" is four. Industry data says Hotstar is market leader in terms of users with approximately 50 million. The new planned restriction will also apply to its cheaper plan which will limit usage across two devices, the second source added. Disney's Hotstar topped India's streaming market between January 2022 and March 2023 with a 38% share of viewership, while rivals Netflix and Prime Video held 5% each, data from research firm Media Partners Asia showed.

Persons: Walt Disney's, Disney's, Disney, Mukesh Ambani's JioCinema, Hotstar, Walt Disney, Aditya Kalra, Munsif Vengattil, Jane Merriman Organizations: Netflix, Disney, Media Partners, Media Partners Asia, Thomson Locations: DELHI, DIS.N, India

The proposal was delivered to the streaming platforms at a June 20 meeting at the Information and Broadcasting Ministry. The government highlighted the need for a "more proactive approach" to ensure that streaming content, "including international content", aligns with a so-called code of ethics, the minutes showed. That code already mandates providers to exercise caution on content that could incite violence or be sensitive for religious reasons. The proposal also comes as streaming giants protest a government order to add 50-second tobacco health warnings in each piece of content, and two years after India ordered the setting up self-regulatory bodies for complaints about streaming content. Suhasini Maniratnam of the Digital Publisher Content Grievance Council, told the gathering pre-censorship could hurt the industry growth and cost jobs, and that given the high volume of content "there is a need to specifically act" against obscene and vulgar content.

Persons: OTT, Anurag Thakur, Thakur, Suhasini, Aditya Kalra, Robert Birsel Organizations: Netflix, Disney, Information and Broadcasting Ministry, Reuters, Media Partners, Amazon, Apple, Industry, Broadcasting, Thomson Locations: India, DELHI, New Delhi, Bengaluru

☆ 'Profitability and monetization' is the focus for streaming companies in Asia, says consultancy
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via Email'Profitability and monetization' is the focus for streaming companies in Asia, says consultancyVivek Couto of Media Partners Asia discusses how streaming companies are accessing the Asian market and why any push to diversify into commerce and gaming is "still a way off".

Persons: Vivek Couto Organizations: Media Partners Asia Locations: Asia

REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis/File PhotoSummarySummary Companies Reliance's JioCinema to lock horns with Netflix, DisneyWarner deal to boost English content, local content in focus tooExecutives say Warner deal will boost Reliance streaming plansJioCinema content quality key to beat rivals, analyst saysMUMBAI, April 28 (Reuters) - The video streaming business of Mukesh Ambani, Asia's richest person, is likely to focus on pricing and local content following a deal with Warner Bros as it seeks to challenge the likes of Disney and Netflix, industry sources said. While Netflix and other rivals boast of content specially created for the India audience, JioCinema's current free offerings largely include old Hindi and local language movies. The big challenge is lack of fresh local and global content on JioCinema, something that will be become even more critical as the IPL season ends next month. They have also diversified into regional local language content. The only way to scale up is to really differentiate your content and make sure execution is right," he said.

☆ Apple CEO Tim Cook to meet with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi following Mumbai store opening
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Seema Mody | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches slew of infrastructure projects from MMRDA Grounds, at Bandra-Kurla Complex, Bandra (East) on Jan. 19, 2023 in Mumbai, India. After opening a flagship store in Mumbai, CEO Tim Cook will travel to New Delhi to meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday. Apple's growth in India is widely seen as a success story by Modi and Indian officials. Flipkart and Amazon are dueling for the top spot in India's e-commerce market, and both face competition from newcomer Meesho. — CNBC's Steve Kovach contributed to this reportWATCH: Tim Cook visits India to open first Apple retail store

☆ India's Network18 reports loss on higher expenses, advertising slowdown
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BENGALURU, Oct 18 (Reuters) - India's Network18 Media & Investments (NEFI.NS) reported a loss for the second quarter on Tuesday, as advertisers spent less and the media conglomerate backed by billionaire Mukesh Ambani poured funds into new television channels and shows. YouTube (GOOGL.O) and Netflix (NFLX.O) have proven to be a big challenge for the already crowded Indian television industry as cheap internet plans have helped video streaming websites compete with TV channels. Consolidated loss attributable to owners of Network18 widened to 364.9 million Indian rupees ($4.44 million) for the three months ended Sept. 30 from 33.2 million rupees in the previous quarter. For Network18, which incorporates a spate of media houses including channels CNBC-TV18 and Colors, quarterly expenses increased nearly 34% to 15.92 billion Indian rupees due to higher operational and promotional expenses. The company had posted a profit of 390.2 million rupees in the September quarter a year ago.

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