MUMBAI: Anil Ambani is on the prowl. His company, Reliance Broadcast Network Ltd (RBNL), is set to buy out the Turner-controlled Bollywood music channel, Imagine Showbiz, for an undisclosed amount, setting the tone for acquisitions in the media and entertainment space early in the year.
The purchase of the struggling channel will mark the entry of Reliance into the Hindi broadcasting space. RBNL already has a joint venture with media conglomerate CBS to initially roll out three English entertainment channels. Big CBS Prime, the first of the gang of three, is up and running since late November.
Reliance Broadcast Network spokesperson refused to comment. Imagine CEO Sameer Nair also declined to comment.
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Industry sources familiar with the development, however, confirm that a formal announcement is expected to be made soon.
RBNL plans a bouquet of channels and will be pursuing the inorganic route as well to build its media empire.
RBNL could have launched a music channel on its own as Showbiz has not made much headway and doesn’t even have distribution. But by buying out the channel, it is taking a faster route to growth,… says a media observer.
Showbiz was launched on 15 August 2008 as a joint venture with NDTV Group holding 51 per cent and Cinestar Advertising having the remaining 49 per cent. But when NDTV sold its stake in NDTV Imagine Ltd (which also has Hindi GEC Imagine TV) to Turner, the channel changed ownership.
“The deal is being structured so that RBNL has complete control of the channel,… industry sources say.
As RBNL has a presence in FM radio, the loading of a music channel will provide a visible synergy to the company’s operations. Reliance Group is also into the film production business.
For Turner, the sale of the music channel will mean that it will now entirely focus on its Hindi general entertainment channel. The year’s lineup includes a reality show Zor Ka Jhatka, the Indian version of international game show Wipeout, to be hosted by Shah Rukh Khan.
The music channel space is getting crowded. “Most of these channels are trailer-revenue led and they have not created enough IPs that would safeguard their valuations. The challenge will be to turnaround Showbiz amid the clutter,” says a media analyst.
MTV India and Channel [V] have repositioned as youth channels and been experimenting to strike the right balance between music and non-music content as they strive to up their revenues.
