Harsh Sheth Set to Head the Channel Business for Star Bharat
Harsh Sheth is set to head the channel business of Star Bharat in the new joint venture (JV) formed between Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), Viacom18 Media, and The Walt Disney Company.
Sheth has been a long-time fixture at the former Disney Star where he has served in a variety of roles for the past decade, the most recent being Business Head for Hindi and English Movies for Disney Star and Hotstar, a position he took over in July of last year.
Sheth’s previous stints have included various business and strategy roles at Times Network as well as the entity formerly known as Star India. Before this, he worked at TAM Media Research.
The newly formed merger, approved by all relevant Indian and global regulatory authorities, unites Viacom18's and JioCinema's media assets with Star India, creating a media conglomerate valued at approximately Rs 70,352 crore (US$8.5 billion). RIL has further invested Rs 11,500 crore (US$1.4 billion) in the JV to bolster its growth into a media and entertainment behemoth, set to change the paradigm of the Indian content landscape.
RIL, holding a 56% majority stake, leads the joint venture, with Disney owning 36.84% and Viacom18 contributing 46.82%. This strategic partnership unites some of India's most popular entertainment brands, such as Star, Colors, JioCinema, and Hotstar, under one umbrella. The newly created media powerhouse will operate more than 100 TV channels, produce over 30,000 hours of content each year, and serve a combined digital subscriber base of over 50 million.