Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd on Tuesday issued a clarification to the bourses on a media report that had said Disney Star was considering taking legal action against ZEE for backing out from a $1.4 billion sublicensing agreement for ICC TV rights, made with Disney’s India unit in August 2022.
The report said Disney Star may take legal action against ZEE for backing out from a four-year $1.4 billion sub-licensing agreement for TV broadcast of ICC events in India.
ZEE, in a clarification to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), said the company was “not aware of, and cannot comment on, Star India Private Limited’s (“Disney Star”) intentions or next steps with respect to the strategic license agreement entered between the company and Disney Star. It appears that the captioned news item mentions Disney Star’s internal discussions/plans, which the Company cannot remark on”.
On January 29, the BSE sought a clarification from the company with reference to said media report.
ZEE also mentioned that the company has always complied with its obligations under the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015 and will continue to make disclosures in accordance with the same.
On January 25, ZEE conveyed to Disney it does not intend to move forward with a deal for four-year TV rights to ICC events it acquired from the House of Mouse.
It was on August 30, 2022, that ZEE announced it had entered into a sublicensing agreement with Disney Star under which it was given the television broadcasting rights for the ICC Men’s and Under-19 global events for a duration of four years.
Disney Star acquired the TV and digital rights in India for the ICC Men’s and Under-19 global events from 2024 to 2027 for $3bn and subsequently sublicensed the TV rights for the men’s and Under-19 global events to Zee while retaining the digital rights.
