James Murdoch’s Bodhi Tree Invests $1.78 Billion in Ambani-Backed Viacom18 in India
By Manish Singh
The Indian conglomerate Reliance and Viacom18 have inked a strategic partnership with Bodhi Tree, an “investment platform” run by James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems and former Disney executive Uday Shankar, in a push to turn the Ambani-backed network, which operates over three dozen television channels in nine languages and streaming services, into “one of the largest TV and digital streaming companies” in the world’s second-largest internet market.
Bodhi Tree is investing $1.78 billion in Viacom18, which also counts Paramount Global among its backers, as part of the partnership, the companies said Wednesday.
The collaboration will also see JioCinema, an on-demand video streaming service owned by Reliance, transferred to Viacom18, the firms said. Reliance Projects and Property Management Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries, is additionally investing $216 million in Viacom18, it said.
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Source: TechCrunch (link opens in a new window)
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