MAM
Oxigen Wallet to sponsor Sachin Tendulkar’s ISL team Kerala Blasters FC
MUMBAI: After promoting the cause of cricket by sponsoring the South African T20 cricket team, the wallet service provider Oxigen has joined hands with Kerala Blasters Football Club as their official payments solution sponsors.
Owned by Sachin Tendulkar, who is Oxigen’s brand ambassador, the Kerala-based club will be competing for top honours in the eleven-week long Indian Super League (ISL). The franchise finished runners-up on the back of a strong showing in the inaugural ISL season last year.
Oxigen Services founder & managing director Pramod Saxena said, “With the launch of the ISL, the Indian football landscape has received a major boost to the popularity of the game, global exposure and encouragement to the players and aspirant youngsters. Through our partnership with Sachin Tendulkar’s Kerala Blasters FC, we are looking to leverage this exposure while at the same time supporting the rise of the Indian football fraternity. Sports, is a great medium, to carry our message to a wider cross section of our young population who will drive the digital revolution including mobile wallets usage in a big way.”
Tendulkar added, “I welcome Oxigen Wallet’s association with Kerala Blasters as the official payment partners for season 2 of the ISL. We look forward to a long association with Oxigen and to jointly offer some exciting initiatives for the many fans of Kerala Blasters.”
Brands
ZEEL transfers syndication business, invests Rs 505 crore in IP push
Restructuring, stake buy and FCCB moves signal sharper content strategy
MUMBAI: In the content economy, owning the story is half the battle monetising it is the real game, and Zee Entertainment Enterprises is doubling down on both. The company has approved the transfer of its syndication and content licensing business to its wholly owned subsidiary ZI-IPR Enterprises, alongside an investment of Rs 505 crore aimed at strengthening its play in content intellectual property (IP) acquisition, management and monetisation. The move, effective April 1, 2026, will see the business transferred on a slump sale basis at book value, including all associated assets, liabilities and commercial rights effectively consolidating IP operations under a more focused structure.
At its core, the restructuring signals a strategic shift. As content consumption increasingly fragments across digital and global platforms, the value of IP lies not just in creation but in how efficiently it can be distributed, repackaged and monetised across markets. By housing its syndication engine within ZI-IPR Enterprises, ZEEL appears to be building a more agile and scalable ecosystem, one that can better extract value from its vast content library while adapting to evolving distribution models.
But the company’s ambitions are not limited to restructuring. ZEEL has also approved an investment of up to Rs 20.09 crore in Culture of Real Experiences (CORE), acquiring a 51 per cent stake in the entity. The move expands its footprint into the broader creative and experiential space, suggesting a push beyond traditional broadcasting into areas where content, culture and immersive experiences intersect.
At the same time, ZEEL has moved to tidy up its financials, approving the redemption of $23.9 million in outstanding foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) and cancelling an unused $215.1 million commitment. The twin steps are expected to ease pressure on its treasury, freeing up capital and improving financial flexibility as the company invests more aggressively in its IP strategy.
Taken together, the decisions reflect a company in recalibration mode streamlining legacy structures, sharpening its focus on content ownership, and exploring new avenues for growth. In a market where the lines between television, streaming and experiential entertainment are increasingly blurred, ZEEL’s latest moves suggest it is not just creating content, but building a system to make that content travel further and pay better.
