Zee Pulls Out Of $1.4 Bn ICC TV Rights Deal With Disney

Zee Entertainment Enterprises has informed Disney Star that it does not want to go ahead with its $1.4 Bn TV sub-licensing deal for International Cricket Council (ICC) tournaments for the 2024-27 period.

According to a PTI report, Zee, which has already missed its first instalment of around $200 Mn, has informed Disney Star that it does not intend to move ahead with the deal.

The instalment to be paid to Disney Star was part of the USD 1.5 Bn investment committed by Sony Group after its merger with Zee.

On Monday, Sony announced termination of the $10 Bn merger agreement with Zee. Simultaneously, Sony is pursuing $90 Mn for breach of conditions and has initiated arbitration proceedings.

According to the merger agreement between Zee and Sony, the Japanese entity was slated to inject $1.575 Bn into the combined entity and secure a majority stake.

On August 30, 2022, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) disclosed its entry into a strategic licensing agreement with Disney Star. The agreement pertained to the television broadcasting rights for the ICC Men’s and Under-19 global events, covering a span of four years.

Last week, the ICC confirmed that Disney Star will cover the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2024 on Star Sports and Disney+ Hotstar. Despite losing the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) media rights, Disney Star has incorporated the ICC television rights deal in its recently released tariffs, raising the bouquet price by roughly 10%.

Meanwhile, it was reported that after the fallout of the Sony-Zee merger, Disney Star’s valuation is reportedly likely to take a significant hit, potentially amounting to $2 Bn.

The fallout from Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) disputing a $1.5 Bn sub-licensing deal for the International Cricket Council (ICC) has triggered concerns about Reliance’s downgrade of Disney Star.

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