Walt Disney Co’s deal with Twenty-First Century Fox Inc gives the world’s best-known entertainment company new advantages in India, such as cricket rights and local-language TV shows for the fast-growing media market.
Through the $52.4 billion deal, Disney would be able to distribute its programming on Star India, operator of 69 TV channels in eight languages, as well as the popular Hotstar streaming service. Disney also would gain global rights to professional cricket.
India represents the second-largest subscription TV market in Asia, with 154 million households in 2016, which projected that number will grow to 167 million in 2021.
Fox projects it will earn $500 million before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization in fiscal 2018, rising to $1 billion in 2020.