Prior to the acquisition, Banijay held a 51% stake in Endemol Shine India.
Banijay has reportedly paid between $90 million and $100 million (Rs 738 crore-Rs 821 crore) to CA Media for the buyout, according to industry sources.
The transaction values the company between $180 million to $200 million, said the sources quoted above.
In 2012, CA Media had bought a 49% stake in the content studio, which produces shows like Bigg Boss and Khatron Ke Khiladi.
CA Media has now successfully divested its investment, reaping a return of nearly four-fold, after engaging in protracted negotiations for an extended duration.The India leg of the deal was completed nearly three years after the France-based group sealed a $2.2 billion deal for Endemol Shine.
The global transaction that created the world’s largest content producer and distributor was announced in October 2019 and completed in July 2020.Banijay refused to confirm the India deal size.
The acquisition paves the way for a comprehensive restructuring of Banijay’s operations in the region to create a content powerhouse in India and Asia.
Following the completion of the India deal, Deepak Dhar has been named as the founder and group CEO, taking charge of both Banijay Asia and Endemol Shine India.
“The reorganisation of Banijay in Asia is our biggest and boldest move yet and aligns with our ambition to drive further growth in India and Asia at large,” said Dhar. “Leveraging the creative potential and possibilities of both brands, we will now strategically pursue complimentary yet independent creative portfolios to offer the most diverse and compelling cross-genre content from across the globe to our Indian and Asian platforms and screens.”
Marco Bassetti, CEO, Banijay, said, “Deepak will now focus on unlocking and aligning other strategic growth avenues to put Banijay in a dominating position, both in India as well as Asia”.
In FY23, Endemol Shine India is believed to have recorded revenues of over Rs 450 crore while net profit came in at over Rs 90 crore, as per estimates shared with ET.
As per the company’s financial data sourced by Tofler, Endemol India doubled its net profit to Rs 82 crore in FY22 while revenue from operations jumped 72% to Rs 426 crore.
Endemol Shine India is among the few content studios in the country that has built scale due to ownership of IP rights. Most content companies have not been able to build scalable businesses since they don’t have the IP, which is owned by broadcasters and streaming companies.
Another source said Banijay Asia and Endemol Shine India will continue to operate separately even though there will be back-end integration between the two firms.
In recent years, Banijay Asia has achieved great success with hit scripted adaptations like The Night Manager, Call My Agent Bollywood, Hostages, and Fall, as well as successful original productions like Dahan, Matsya Kaand, Undekhi, and Tribhanga.
The content studio has exciting upcoming shows in the pipeline, including Indian adaptations of The Good Wife, Monk, House, and Suits. Additionally, Banijay is at the forefront of non-scripted programming with blockbuster titles such as The Kapil Sharma Show, MTV Roadies, The Voice, The Big Picture, Into The Wild with Bear Grylls, and Case Toh Banta Hai.
Meanwhile, since 2005, Endemol Shine India has established itself as a leading producer in multiple regions with popular shows like Bigg Boss. They have also successfully adapted international formats like Fear Factor, MasterChef, and Deal or No Deal for the Indian audience.
With a strong market presence, Banijay achieved €3.2 billion in revenues and €472 million in EBITDA in 2022. The company has an extensive network of 130 production companies operating in 21 territories, offering a diverse and innovative multi-genre catalogue of programming.
According to a Ficci-EY 2023 report on the Indian media and entertainment sector, total content released across media platforms aggregated 165k hours in 2022, an increase of 3% over 2021.
At 96%, television continued to contribute the most to the creation of content. While OTT content gained 18% over 2021, film content more than doubled in 2022.
Following its exit from Endemol Shine India, CA Media remains invested in the video streaming service YuppTV, artist management and content production company OML, digital celebrity network Fluence, and character entertainment company Graphic India.
