Viacom18
Viacom 18 Media Private Limited is an Indian joint venture operation between TV18 and Paramount Global based in Mumbai.[3] It was founded in November 2007 and owns various channels of Paramount, as well as various consumer products in India. It continues to use the Viacom name despite its parent company being renamed to Paramount.
 | |
| Type | Joint venture |
|---|---|
| Industry | Television |
| Founded | November 2007 |
| Headquarters | Mumbai, Maharashtra, India[1] |
Key people | Rahul Joshi (CEO) |
| Owners | Network18 Group (51%) Paramount Networks EMEAA (49%) |
| Subsidiaries | Viacom18 US Viacom18 Media Roptanol The Indian Film Company[2] Viacom18 Studios |
| Website | Viacom18.com |
History
In January 2010, Viacom 18 went international with the launch of Colors in United States. The channel is called Aapka Colors. In July 2010, it got into 50/50 distribution joint venture with Sun Network to form Sun 18.[4]
In December 2011, Viacom 18 launched Nickelodeon Sonic, targeting young adults.[5]
In January 2014, TV18 acquired the non-Telugu language TV assets of ETV Network for ₹2,053 Crore, with a permission to use ETV brand name.[6]
In March 2015, Viacom 18 decided to rebrand all five non-Telugu language ETV regional general entertainment channels. ETV Marathi, ETV Gujarati, ETV Kannada, ETV Bangla and ETV Odia were rebranded into Colors Marathi, Colors Gujarati, Colors Kannada, Colors Bangla and Colors Odia respectively.[7]
The company also owns Viacom18 Studios. On 31 January 2018, TV18 announced its acquisition of Viacom's majority in the joint venture, taking operational control and leaving Viacom with minority interest.[8] On 1 October 2019, Viacom 18 launched Colors HD in Malaysia on Astro Malaysia; every serial will be served with Malay and English subtitles.
More recently, the company had signed a deal with the National Basketball Association in order to deliver live NBA games to all of their own networks.[9]
Merger attempts
Merger with Sony
On 21 June 2020, Sony's Indian unit Sony Pictures Networks India talks to Viacom 18 to be merged into one entity. As per reports, merger of Sony Pictures Network and Viacom 18 is in the final stages and likely to be announced soon.[10] and Sony may hold 74% stake in the merged company.
However in October 2020, Reliance Industries,[11] the parent company and majority share holder in Viacom 18, calls off merger of Viacom 18 with Sony.[12][13]
Merger With Zee
In June 2021,[14] reports saying Viacom18 Media Private Ltd and Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) are reportedly in talks about merger.[15] However ZEEL denies any potential merger deal with Viacom 18,[16] and entered in talks with Sony Pictures Networks India.[17]
Merger with Lupa India
On 27 January 2022, media reports Lupa India, the investment company set up by Uday Shankar and James Murdoch, is in the final stages of picking up a 39 per cent stake in Viacom 18.[18] thereby turning Paramount Global into a minority share holder with a 10 per cent share in the company.[19]
Channels and platforms
On-air channels
Following are the distribution channels available from Viacom18:[20]
| Channel | Launched | Language | Category | SD/HD availability | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colors TV | 2008 | Hindi | General Entertainment | SD+HD | |
| Colors Rishtey | 2014 | SD | |||
| Colors Cineplex | 2016 | Movies | SD+HD | ||
| Colors Cineplex Bollywood | 2021 | SD | |||
| Colors Cineplex Superhits | 2022 | ||||
| MTV | 1996 | Youth | SD+HD | ||
| MTV Beats | 2014 | Music | |||
| Sports18 Khel | 2022 | Sports | SD | ||
| Colors Infinity | 2015 | English | General Entertainment | SD+HD | |
| Comedy Central | 2012 | ||||
| VH1 | 2005 | Music | |||
| Sports18 1 | 2022 | Sports | |||
| Nickelodeon | 1999 | Hindi Tamil Telugu Malayalam Bengali Marathi Gujarati Kannada |
Kids | SD | |
| Nickelodeon Sonic | 2011 | ||||
| Nick Jr. | 2012 | Hindi English |
|||
| Nick HD+ | 2015 | HD | |||
| Colors Bangla | 2000 | Bengali | General Entertainment | SD+HD | Previously known as ETV Bangla |
| Colors Bangla Cinema | 2019 | Movies | SD | ||
| Colors Gujarati | 2002 | Gujarati | General Entertainment | Previously known as ETV Gujarati | |
| Colors Gujarati Cinema | 2019 | Movies | |||
| Colors Kannada | 2000 | Kannada | General Entertainment | SD+HD | Previously known as ETV Kannada |
| Colors Super | 2016 | SD | |||
| Colors Kannada Cinema | 2018 | Movies | |||
| Colors Marathi | 2000 | Marathi | General Entertainment | SD+HD | Previously known as ETV Marathi |
| Colors Odia | 2002 | Odia | SD | Previously known as ETV Odia | |
| Colors Tamil | 2018 | Tamil | SD+HD |
Upcoming Channels
| Channel | Launching Date | Language | Genre | Availability | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sports18 2 | English | Sports | SD+HD | ||
| Rishtey Bhojpuri | Bhojpuri | General Entertainment | SD |
Over The Top (OTT)
References
- "Viacom18 Media Pvt. Ltd". Viacom18.com. Archived from the original on 23 October 2018. Retrieved 27 July 2018.
- "TV18 Broadcast Ltd (CRD)" (PDF). BSEIndia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 September 2015.
- "Corporate restructure complete for India's Network18". rapidtvnews.com. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
- "Beefing Up The Bouquet". business.outlookindia.com. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
- "Viacom18 launches its new channel 'Sonic Nickelodeon' in India". India Infoline. 5 December 2018. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
- Network18 finishes Rs 2,053-cr deal to acquire ETV stakes
- "ETV re-branding to Colors". Retrieved 4 March 2015.
- "TV18 to increase stake to 51% in Viacom18, the JV with Viacom Inc". Viacom18. 31 January 2018. Retrieved 31 January 2018.
- "Viacom18 inks three-year media rights deal with NBA - Exchange4media". Indian Advertising Media & Marketing News – exchange4media. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- IANS (21 July 2020). "Sony to own 74% after merger with Viacom 18, to battle Disney Star". National Herald. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- "Reliance Industries calls off merger of Viacom18 with Sony - Times of India". The Times of India. PTI. 5 October 2020. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- Jha, Lata (5 October 2020). "Sony's slated merger with Viacom18 now called off". mint. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- "Jio | Mukesh Ambani: With Jio in mind, Mukesh Ambani's RIL calls off merger of Viacom18, Sony". The Economic Times. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- Laskar, Anirudh (20 June 2021). "Viacom18 and Zee Entertainment in early merger talks". mint. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- "Viacom18 and Zeel eyeing a merger?". Indian Television Dot Com. 21 June 2021. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- "ZEEL denies any potential merger deal with Viacom18 - Exchange4media". Indian Advertising Media & Marketing News – exchange4media. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- "ZEEL starts due diligence process for merger with Sony Pictures Networks". The Financial Express. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- Gupta, Surajeet Das (27 January 2022). "Uday Shankar, James Murdoch firm to pick up 39% stake in Viacom 18". Business Standard India. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- Laghate, Gaurav. "Uday Shankar, James Murdoch plan to pick up nearly 40% in Viacom18, Reliance to retain majority stake". The Economic Times. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- "Our Channels - On Air". viacom18.com.