Anil Ambani all set to become the next media Moghul of India

By Vipin Agnihotri

Anil Ambani is in news these days. After picking up stake in India’s premier electronic media channel Aajtak, he is all set to buy himself a bouquet of electronic channels. Indications are that Anil Ambani would be looking at general entertainment channels first and later on plans to venture into the news channel domain as well.

According to company sources, these channels were slated for a phased rollout beginning 2008. Point to be noted here is that ADAG has taken on board Ashutosh, the business head of Sahara One and Entertainment's Hindi movie channel Filmy, as the COO for its upcoming movie channels.

With his planned foray into mainstream entertainment channel, there is no doubt in my mind that Anil Ambani is all set to become the next media moghul of India.

It is worth mentioning in this regard that ADAG already has a presence in the radio business (BIG 92.7 FM), releasing music under the BIG Music label. What’s more, ADAG has been producing, distributing and screening movies through Adlabs Films, in which it holds a majority stake.

Furthermore, ADAG has already tied up with Microsoft to launch IPTV services in India. In addition, the DTH services are to be rolled out very soon. It has come into the notice of The India Street that Anil Ambani is also interested in Adlabs for which he plans to make India’s largest film distribution & cinema chain.

The top-notch officials of ADAG have been scouting for directors, producers and actors continuously. As a matter of fact, company has reportedly sent blank cheques to few filmmakers to get them onboard their new production house - BIG Motion Pictures.

Few days back, ADAG launched BigFlicks.com, a video-on-demand portal. Targeting more than 35 million non-resident Indians (NRIs), BigFlicks.com allow users to stream movies for free or download at prices ranging between $2 and $16. At this moment of time, BigFlicks.com offers 1,000 titles in Hindi, Kannada, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu and Punjabi. BigFlicks.com will also provide music and television content.

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Anil Ambani to foray into investment banking

Anil Ambani all set to become the next big deal maker. According to sources, with India Inc making acquisitions worth at least a billion dollar every month, the Reliance ADAG Group is ready for a foray into investment and merchant banking advisory services. It has come into the notice that the company is planning to float a 100 per cent subsidiary under Reliance Capital, which is a depository participant of the two major depositories in the country and carries out retail broking under the name Reliance Money. In addition, it also funds projects and acts as a cash cow to other ADAG subsidiaries. Initial signs are that the group is in talks with a couple of foreign investment banks not having a presence in India, sources close to the development said. "The proposed entity would be a fully-owned subsidiary of Reliance Capital. RADAG is scouting for a foreign partner to form a joint venture," pointed out official at Reliance Capital. At the present juncture, Reliance Capital’s subsidiaries include Reliance Capital Asset Management Ltd, Reliance Capital Trustee Co Ltd, Reliance General Insurance Company Ltd and Reliance Life Insurance Company Ltd. In theory, the total equity deals struck by India Inc in the last one-year period had crossed $50 billion, of which $46.8 billion was in 287 mergers and acquisitions and $5.1 billion was private equity investments, according to a Grant Thornton study. Point to be noted here is that investment banking firms, which act as advisors, financiers and brokers to mergers and acquisitions deals, usually earn 5 to 10 per cent in commissions. Not so long ago, Reliance Capital started its retail broking venture under the name of Reliance Money, which is trying to establish itself as a one-stop shop for customers' financial needs.

Source: Hindustan Times.com