Anti-monopoly action: Reliance-Disney get away

After some initial hiccups, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has given interim approval to the merger of two entertainment and media behemoths – Disney India and the Reliance-controlled Viacom18. The merged entity will be a $8.5 billion powerhouse, dwarfing all others. With about 120 broadcasting channels, a reach of 750 million people worldwide, cornering a combined revenue of 43% of the advertising market, and with two of the largest streaming platforms – Jio Cinema and Disney + Hotstar – what we are seeing is an outsized media monopoly.