RTL Group and Reliance Broadcast Network Limited signed a joint venture agreement to launch thematic television channels in India through an equally owned, joint venture company.
The joint venture company will be a limited liability company, incorporated in India. RTL Group and RBNL (through its subsidiaries) will act as shareholders with an equal 50% equity interest in the joint venture. The initial scope of the investment will include two English-speaking thematic TV channels; a reality channel with international content, mainly from RTL Group’s production arm FremantleMedia, and a channel primarily targeting male viewers with action-oriented content.
This joint venture marks RTL Group’s entry into the burgeoning Asian television market and Reliance Broadcast Network’s second international joint venture, following suit to its joint venture with CBS Studios International. The joint venture channels focusing on the reality and action genres, will address a clear void in international entertainment programming that currently exists in India.