Amazon eyes potential stake in Indian film, media businesses; Inox denies report

BENGALURU (Reuters) – Amazon.com Inc’s India arm is in talks with several domestic players in film and media distribution including cinema chain Inox Leisure Ltd for a potential stake, the Indian Express newspaper reported on Tuesday, citing sources.

Inox, however, said the report was “factually incorrect” and there were no discussions between the company and Amazon India.

Shares of the Mumbai-headquartered company jumped as much as 14.3% to 346.20 rupees after the report, but pared some gains to last trade 6% up.

Amazon India is planning to expand its content streaming platform Prime Video and is evaluating three to four deals, according to the report. (bit.ly/3iUpqgS)

India has been a hotbed of competition for companies like Amazon, Netflix Inc and Walt Disney Inc, all of which have been investing significantly to ramp up original streaming content in regional languages.

The e-commerce giant in January had launched a lower priced mobile-only subscription plan for its video streaming service in India, undercutting a similar plan by Netflix to woo price-sensitive subscribers.

Prime Video had marked its foray into Indian film production in March and counts the south Asian nation as one of its fastest growing markets.

Inox, India’s second-largest multiplex chain, has reported a net loss for at least five consecutive quarters since March 2020, when a nationwide coronavirus lockdown was imposed.

Amazon India did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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