Paramount Global off-loads Viacom18 India stake to Reliance Industries for $517m

Paramount Global has entered an agreement to sell its 13% minority stake in Indian media company Viacom18 to Mumbai-based Reliance Industries for around US$517m.

Mukesh Ambani

The transaction, which has been rumoured since earlier this month, was revealed in a securities filing on Wednesday.

The deal sees Reliance, owned by Asia’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani, extend what is already a majority stake in Viacom18.

Assets sitting within the Viacom18 umbrella include the JioCinema streaming service, Viacom18 Studios and 40 TV channels including the Indian versions of Comedy Central, Nickelodeon and MTV.

In its filing, Paramount noted that the transaction was subject to the receipt of several regulatory approvals and the completion of the previously announced joint venture involving Reliance, Viacom18 and Disney.

Under that deal, revealed last month, Disney and Reliance are merging their Indian businesses in an US$8.5bn deal that will bring together two streamers, Disney+ Hotstar and JioCinema, and some 120 TV channels.

Paramount Global noted in its filing that it will continue to license its content to Viacom18 once the transaction is completed.

For cash-strapped Paramount, the deal comes as it continues to both sell off assets and talk to potential buyers of the entire company. Over the past six months, it has sold book publishing company Simon & Schuster and mixed martial arts promotion Bellator, laid off more than 800 staffers and closed down its preschool subscription service Noggin.

David Ellison’s Skydance is in talks to acquire a majority stake in Paramount Global’s parent company National Amusements in a deal that, if realised, would give it control of Paramount Global. Earlier this week, Axios reported that private equity firm Apollo Global Management was also still interested in exploring a deal to acquire some or all the assets of Paramount Global.