Apple is making inroads into the Indian entertainment industry where players such as Netflix and Amazon are already present. The Tim Cook-led company, sources said, may be looking at signing a billion-dollar content deal with Eros International, the NYSE-listed parent of Eros International Media, the Indian film studio that forms the core of Kishore Lulla’s film business.
Eros International Media’s share price jumped 4.5 per cent on Monday on the news, finishing the day’s trading at Rs 219.5 (opened at Rs 210.5). The Indian film studio, in a statement to the BSE, said it was “not privy to any strategic discussion that our NYSE-listed parent company Eros International may be having with various potential partners”.
Experts, however, have reservations about the deal. They reiterated that a content-first company selling its content sounds counterproductive. “We don’t know the specifics yet, so it is difficult to tell the impact of the deal, if at all it goes through. But here’s the thing: If Eros sells all its content, library and new content, what will it be left with? Will it be shifting focus from production to distribution only? What happens to Eros Now and all the shows they commissioned for it?” a distributor said.
Queries regarding these issues sent to Eros International Media went unanswered. Eros International holds about 73 per cent in Eros International Media and also owns the digital subsidiary Eros Now. Eros Now was launched in 2015 with films from the Eros library in multiple Indian languages and original series. Eros International Media also owns Trinity Pictures, a subsidiary production house focussing on creation of IP’s that can be converted into franchises. With the entry of international over-the-top players, Indian film-makers have made a scramble to sign deals with Netflix and Amazon to make the most of their existing IPs. Almost all Indian studios except, Eros, inked deals with digital platforms to distribute their films. Eros Now houses Eros Media’s productions in India, the newest ones behind a paywall, and some from the library available for free.
Eros began exploring strategic options 6 months ago
A report on Reuters said Eros began exploring strategic options about six months ago for its Indian content library. A source told Reuters that Eros had attempted to work out deals with top domestic broadcasters including Sony, Star, Viacom and Zee. The Eros library was worth less than the $1 billion quoted in the a report that came out on Monday, the source said, adding Apple was unlikely to splurge on Indian content.
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