Confirmed: Star-ZEE sign India distribution deal
Star Network and ZEE Network have both signed a 50-50 joint venture deal to distribute their channels together in India.
Star Den is an existing 50:50 joint venture between Star India and Den Networks, while ZEE Turner is a 74:26 joint venture between ZEE Entertainment Enterprises and Turner International India. In the new deal, both companies will have an equal stake in the new umbrella group, which will be known as Media Pro Enterprise India.
The landmark joint venture will have combined revenues of over Rs 2,000 crore and Star Den will get nearly 53% revenue from the joint venture, according to CNBC-TV18.
���The long-term vision of this venture is to pool together the resources of both the partners so as to address various anomalies of the present analog market, curb piracy and introduce transparency by accelerating pace of digitisation in India,� said Punit Goenka, managing director and chief executive officer of ZEE Entertainment.
Talking to Business StandardStar India CEO Uday Shankar said that coming together of “the two leaders will lead to a larger consensus around a growth blueprint for the Indian electronic media industry”.
The new joint venture would mark the reunion of the ZEE and Star groups, which are among the earliest entrants into the Indian private television space, after many years.
