Zee Incurs Rs 432 Crore Loss from Failed Sony Merger
Zee Entertainment spent Rs 432 crore on the unsuccessful merger with Sony, incurring significant costs over two fiscal years, as detailed in regulatory filings.
Sumit Rawat
Zee Incurs Rs 432 Crore Loss from Failed Sony Merger
A news report, referencing Zee's regulatory filing, reveals that Zee Entertainment incurred Rs 432 crore in costs related to the failed merger with Sony Group Corporation's Culver Max Entertainment during the fiscal years 2022-23 and 2023-24.
In 2022-23, Zee spent Rs 176 crore on merger-related expenses, followed by Rs 256 crore in 2023-24. The merger, announced in September 2021, aimed to create a Rs 14,851-crore entity, combining Zee's and Sony's linear networks, digital assets, production operations, and program libraries. Definitive agreements were signed in December 2021 after an exclusive negotiation period involving mutual due diligence.
The merger would have made the combined entity India’s fourth-largest media company after Google, Meta, and Disney-Star. However, it fell through in January 2022 due to 'non-compliance with terms of agreement,' according to Sony.
To meet merger conditions, Zee closed several businesses in 2022-23, including Margo Networks, resulting in Rs 331 crore in impairment charges. The impact on Zee's consolidated results was Rs 98 crore for 2022-23, with an additional estimated liability of Rs 32 crore for 2023-24.
