NEW DELHI ― India's antitrust body has asked Reliance Industries and Walt Disney around 100 questions linked to their $8.5 billion India media assets merger, including details on sports rights, as it heightens its scrutiny of the deal, two sources told Reuters.Antitrust experts had warned that the Reliance and Disney deal, which was announced in February, could face intense scrutiny as it will create India's biggest entertainment player with 120 TV channels and two streaming services.
Reliance and Disney have responded to the CCI questions and argued YouTube too has its own licensed, paid content as well as a wide reach, said the sources, who declined to be named as the information is confidential.Data from Media Partners Asia last year showed that YouTube accounted for 88 percent of the online video market in India, while the premium video market of 12 percent is dominated by streaming services, which 'curate premium long-form content.