Reliance-Disney JV creates digital powerhouse, yet Disney projects $200 mn loss in year to September

Media and entertainment conglomerate Walt Disney Company has projected an equity loss of approximately $200 million for the year ended September from its India joint venture with Reliance Industries Ltd, primarily driven by purchase accounting amortization, suggesting that integration costs or performance issues remain in the country.

Disney recorded a $50 million loss from the India JV under “equity in the income of investees” for their third quarter ended June. Disney follows October-September fiscal year.

The joint venture, formalized on 14 November 2024, combined Disney’s Star-branded general entertainment and sports channels and its Disney+ Hotstar streaming service with the media assets controlled by Reliance.

The Mukesh Ambani-owned firm holds a 56% controlling stake in the joint venture, Disney retains 37%, and an investment firm holds the remaining 7%.

Further, Disney said that linear networks’ international revenue and operating income dropped 58% and 92%, respectively in Q3, largely due to the deconsolidation of Star India.

Disney reported 2% increase in revenues to $23.7 billion from $23.2 billion a year ago. The entertainment segment operating income stood at $1.0 billion, a $179 million decrease versus last year.

Disney+, the company’s video streaming service reported 128 million subscribers, an increase of 1.8 million versus Q2 FY2025.

The India JV now combines Reliance’s Viacom18 network (with channels like Colors and Sports18) and Disney’s Star network (including Star Plus, Star Gold, and Star Sports) under a single umbrella.

On the streaming front, the JV brings together JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar, creating a digital powerhouse with a combined reach of over 750 million viewers in India.

JioHotstar, the video streaming platform created with the merger of Disney+ Hotstar and JioCinema in India, said it had crossed 100 million paid subscribers, this March.

The combined Reliance-Disney streaming entity is three to four times bigger than the likes of Netflix in terms of total hours of programming and may even look at acquiring smaller,niche language-specific entitiesthat are struggling to survive, according to industry experts.