Reliance shares trade higher post Bodhi Tree System, Viacom 18 partnerships

Shares of energy-to-telecom behemoth Reliance Industries were trading higher in early trade on Thursday after Reliance and Viacom18 announced a strategic partnership with Bodhi Tree Systems, which is a platform of James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems and Uday Shankar, to form one of the largest TV and digital streaming companies in India.

The stock opened 1 per cent higher at Rs 2,815 against the previous close of Rs 2,777.90. With a market capitalisation of Rs 18,89,790 crore, the shares stand higher than 5-day, 20-day, 50-day, 100 day and 200 day moving averages.

On Wednesday, the market cap of the Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate also crossed Rs 19 lakh crore mark and it became the first company to cross that historic mark.

Bodhi Tree Systems is leading a fundraise with a consortium of investors to invest Rs 13,500 crore in Viacom18, to jointly build India’s leading entertainment platform and pioneer the Indian media landscape’s transformation to a “streaming-first” approach.

Reliance Projects & Property Management Services Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries which has a significant presence in television, OTT, distribution, content creation, and production services, will invest Rs 1,645 crore. In addition, the JioCinema OTT app will be transferred to Viacom18, the company said.

Speaking about the partnership, Mr. Mukesh D Ambani, Chairman & Managing Director of Reliance Industries Limited, said, “James and Uday’s track record is
unmatched. For over two decades, they have played an undeniable role in shaping the media ecosystem in India, Asia, and around the world. We are very excited to partner with Bodhi Tree and lead India’s transition to a streaming-first media market. We are committed to bringing the best media and entertainment services for Indian customers through this partnership.”

“We could not be more pleased to announce our new partnership,” Murdoch and Shankar said. “Our ambition is to leverage technology advances, particularly in mobile, to provide meaningful solutions to meet everyday media and entertainment needs at scale. We seek to reshape the entertainment experience across more than 1 billion screens," he added.

The transaction is expected to close within six months and is subject to closing conditions and requisite approvals.

In addition, Reliance Industries and U.S. buyout firm Apollo Global Management are also planning a joint bid for UK high street pharmacy chain Boots, a spokesperson for Apollo confirmed on Wednesday.

The Financial Times, which first reported on the joint bid citing people familiar with the matter, said the deal would see Boots expand its presence into India, Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

Both Reliance and Apollo would own stakes in Boots under the plan, although it is not clear whether the stakes would be of the same size, according to the FT report.