Zee – Sony merger deal sealed; Punit Goenka to be MD, CEO

TIL Desk/Business/Mumbai/ Sony Pictures Networks India Pvt Ltd (SPNI) and Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) on Wednesday said they have signed definitive agreements for their merger following conclusion of an exclusive negotiation period during which both parties conducted mutual due diligence.

In a joint statement, the two companies said they have “signed definitive agreements to merge ZEEL with and into SPNI and combine their linear networks, digital assets, production operations and program libraries”.

The agreements follow the conclusion of an exclusive negotiation period during which ZEEL and SPNI conducted mutual due diligence, it added. When the merger deal was announced in September, the two networks had stated that Sony would invest $1.575 billion and hold 52.93 per cent stake in the merged entity and Zee the remaining 47.07 per cent.

Under the terms of the definitive agreements, the statement said SPNI will have a cash balance of $1.5 billion at closing, including through infusion by the current shareholders of SPNI and the promoter founders of ZEEL.