Lupa India, an investment vehicle established by James Murdoch and Uday Shankar, is on the verge of acquiring a 39% stake in the India-based TV company Viacom 18 which is owned by a CBS / Reliance Industries JV.
The company operates TV and online entertainment and is also entering sports. Its India franchised brands include: Nickelodeon, MTV, History TV 18 and Comedy Central. Lupa is acquiring its stake from CBS Viacom: the shareholdings will be Reliance Industries 51%, Lupa India 39%, and CBS Viacom 10%. The deal values Viacom 18 at $4bn and will inject $1.6bn into the broadcaster from the new and existing investors.
