iWorld
Crunchyroll to launch on Amazon channels in India
MUMBAI: Anime lovers in India are in for a treat. Crunchyroll, the anime OTT from Sony Pictures is being readied for a launch on Amazon channels in India and in many countries in south east Asia.
Speaking at an investor analyst call on 30 June, Sony Pictures chairman & CEO Tony Vinciquerra announced that the rollout of Crunchyroll on Amazon is going to happen in a couple of months.
“We have more that 13 million subscribers,” he said. “Crunchyroll is going to be our prime driver for us. We have not really pushed the service in Asia. We are now building up the inventory for our launch. The Amazon channels deal has done very well for us in the US and we are confident it will do as well in south east Asia and India as well.”
AnimeTimes, another service, from Japanese firm Avex Pictures is already available on Amazon channels in India.
iWorld
Jio IPO faces delay as India yet to clear listing rule changes
Proposed rule change allows mega IPOs to float just 2.5 per cent
MUMBAI: The Indian government’s delay in formalising changes to listing rules may derail the targeted timeline for the initial public offering (IPO) of Jio Platforms, the digital arm of Reliance Industries controlled by billionaire Mukesh Ambani.
According to media reports, Reliance is awaiting formal notification of regulatory amendments before appointing investment bankers and filing a draft IPO prospectus. The company is now aiming to submit the draft prospectus before April, depending on when the government issues the notification.
Jio, which owns India’s largest wireless operator, is widely seen as one of the crown jewels of Ambani’s business empire. Its listing, the first public offering of a major Reliance unit in nearly two decades, could become the country’s biggest ever IPO.
Investment bankers have proposed a valuation of as much as $170 billion for the company. Even the minimum stake sale could raise roughly $4.3 billion, potentially placing Jio among India’s most valuable listed companies.
Ambani had earlier said that Reliance was targeting a listing of Jio in the first half of 2026, a plan first outlined in 2019 with a five-year timeline. In 2020, global technology groups Meta Platforms and Alphabet invested more than $10 billion combined in the company.
The delay stems from pending regulatory changes approved by the Securities and Exchange Board of India in September. The amendments allow companies with a post-issue market capitalisation exceeding Rs 5 trillion (about $55 billion) to float as little as 2.5 per cent of equity in an IPO, compared with the current 5 per cent minimum.
Such changes are expected to enable mega listings, including potential offerings by Jio and the National Stock Exchange of India. However, the reforms still require formal notification from the government.
Meanwhile, the National Stock Exchange is moving ahead with plans to raise as much as $2.5 billion through its own IPO and has recently invited banks to pitch for roles in the offering.
