Antitrust Concerns Loom Over Reliance-Disney $8.5 Billion Merger

India's antitrust body has raised concerns over the $8.5 billion merger between Reliance and Walt Disney's media assets, citing potential harm to competition due to their control over cricket broadcast rights. The Competition Commission of India has asked the companies to justify why an investigation should not be conducted.

India's antitrust body has raised concerns that the $8.5 billion merger between Reliance and Walt Disney media assets could harm competition, especially due to their dominance over cricket broadcast rights, sources told Reuters on Tuesday.

In the most significant obstruction so far to their planned merger, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has privately communicated its apprehensions to Disney and Reliance. The companies have been asked to explain why an investigation shouldn't be initiated, according to one source.

Neither Reliance, Disney, nor the CCI immediately responded to requests for comment. All sources requested anonymity due to the confidentiality of the CCI's process. "Cricket is the biggest pain point for the CCI," said one source. The merged entity, predominantly controlled by Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance, would hold lucrative cricket broadcast rights, raising fears of pricing dominance and advertiser control. Antitrust experts had priorly warned that the merger, unveiled in February, might undergo rigorous scrutiny as it would result in India’s largest entertainment entity, competing with Sony, Zee Entertainment, Netflix, and Amazon, among others, with a combined fleet of 120 TV channels and two streaming services.