CCI Clears Tata Son’s Acquisition Of Additional Stake In Tata Play

Tata Sons Chief Urges Group Companies To Adopt AI For Business Growth

SUMMARY

Tata Sons will buy the additional stakes from Temasek Holdings

The conglomerate had sought the approval from CCI for acquiring additional stakes nearly a month back

Earlier, Bharti Airtel was also in talks with the Tata Group to acquire the OTT services platform

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved Tata Groups’ holding firm Tata Sons’ proposed acquisition of an additional 10% stake in the over-the-top (OTT) services platform Tata Play from Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings.

“Commission approves the acquisition of certain additional shareholding in Tata Play Limited (Tata Play) by Tata Sons Private Limited (Tata Sons) from Baytree Investments (Mauritius) Pte Ltd.,” the antitrust regulator said in a statement.

It is pertinent to note that Baytree Investments (Mauritius) is an affiliate of Temasek.

Tata Play (erstwhile Tata Sky) is the group’s digital content distribution arm. It offers OTT and direct-to-home services to its customers.

The development comes almost a month after Tata Sons reportedly sought approval from CCI for acquiring additional stakes in Tata Play.

At that time, Tata Sons owned 70% stake in the OTT services provider after it bought an additional 10% stake in the company from Teamsek Holdings for INR 835 Cr in April 2024. The remaining 30% stake lies with the global entertainment brand Walt Disney.

It is pertinent to note that telecom major Bharti Airtel was also in talks with the Tata Group to acquire its underperforming venture Tata Play at a valuation of $1 Bn.

The OTT landscape in India is largely ruled by the Reliance-led JioHotstar after JioCinema and Start India made their amalgamation this year. In fact, to boost their growth and capitalise on the burgeoning OTT market in India, the Mukesh Ambani-led company also plans to pump INR 11,500 Cr into the new platform.

This also comes close on the heels of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) proposing that OTT platforms should come under the purview of the Indian Telecommunications Act, 2023. However, Reliance along with other OTT players such as Netflix, Amazon, Universal Studios and Warner Bros have opposed the regulatory authority’s move.

Today, CCI also approved Hindustan Unilever’s acquisition of 90.5% stake in Minimalist for a cash consideration of INR 2,670 Cr at a pre-money enterprise valuation of INR 2,955 Cr.