Essel says plans to sell 50% ZEEL stake

NEWDELHI:MEDIA and entertainment conglomerate Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) has decided to divest 50% of Essel Group’s shareholding in the company as it looks for a global strategic partner.

The move would help it maximize long-term value and transform it into a global media-tech player with content offering for audiences in more than 170 countries, ZEEL said on Tuesday.

Essel has decided to appoint Goldman Sachs Securities (India) Ltd as its investment banker and US and Europebased Lion Tree as an international strategic adviser for this exercise. It expects the outcome of the strategic review to be concluded by April 2019.

The decision to divest comes on the back of ZEEL’S strong bouquet of domestic and international channels that offer content in about 12 languages globally, its established revenue streams—both advertising and subscription—and the fact that its video-on-demand streaming platform ZEE5 will further enable the company to take advantage of changing video consumption trends. Its strong linear and digital distribution network already ensures its presence in the south Asian diaspora but the goal is global.

In view of recent technological advances like artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, 3D printing, artificial reality and virtual reality, ZEEL recognises that the lines between media, telecom, manufacturing and technology are blurring and that the company needs to evolve to stay ahead of the curve.

In July this year, Essel Corporate Llp acquired 15 million shares of ZEEL, increasing its shareholding with respect to the total share capital of ZEEL from 1.49% to 3.05%.