Universal Music India will buy a 30% equity stake in Excel Entertainment. For the purpose, the studio has been valued at Rs. 2,400 crore.
The deal, which was announced in the presence of Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, provides the foundation for a new strategic partnership between Universal Music India and Excel Entertainment to accelerate the latter’s growth and enhance the former’s position in the Indian market.
In his speech made on the occasion, Fadnavis said, the seeds of this transaction were first sown at the WAVES summit in Bombay last year. He added that global companies, while choosing to invest, looked for talent, policy, stability, respect for intellectual property, speed of execution, and a complete ecosystem. He explained that Bombay and Maharashtra offered all these things, supported by the government’s progressive policies, ease of doing business, skill development, and institutional support for intellectual property.
As per the deal, Universal will be granted global distribution rights for all future original soundtracks created for projects owned or controlled by Excel.