Essel Group
(US$2.4 billion) (2023)
(US$ -19 million) (2023)
- Zee Media Corporation (4.34%)
- Zee Entertainment Enterprises (3.99%)
- Dish TV (4.04%)
- Siti Networks (6.10%)
Essel Group, (also known as Zee Group) is an Indian multinational conglomerate holding company and corporate promoter headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.[2] The company has had business interests in mass media, infrastructure and packaging. It operates the subsidiary of Zee Media Corporation.[3][4][5]
Founded in 1926 as the Messrs Ramgopal Indraprasad by Jagannath Goenka, the company was expanded and converted into the Essel Group of Industries by his grandson, Subhash Chandra.[6] Chandra is part of the Goenka (Goel) family which owns and operates the group; he was also the chairman of the company and a former member of the Rajya Sabha.[7]
Experiencing financial troubles in 2019,[8][9] Essel sold off several of its assets, including Essel Propack and stakes of Zee Entertainment Enterprises.[8][9]
History
1926–1967
In 1926, Jagannath Goenka founded the Messrs Ramgopal Indraprasad as a commercial firm to deal in
1967–1992
In 1967, the business suffered a series of losses, leaving the Goenka family at a net deficit of ₹600,000 (equivalent to ₹32 million or US$400,000 in 2023). Between 1967–68, the Goenkas' connections in the Food Corporation of India (FCI) helped the family secure not only a deal to supply it with polished pulses and cleaned barley but also a later contract for storage of food grains.[6]
In 1973, control of the company was handed over to Subhash Chandra, the grandson of Jagannath Goenka.[10]
The company renamed itself the Essel Group in 1976. After acquiring a storage contract with the FCI in the same year, Essel established a new subsidiary, Lamina Packers, to manufacture packaging materials.
In December 1982, Lamina Packers became incorporated as
1992–Present
As of 1992, Essel Group began to take a bigger interest and stake in the entertainment industry. That year it incorporated
In 1994,
The company continued to develop entertainment channels that successfully competed with
In 2000, Zee Telefilms ended its partnership with Star TV by buying out its shares in Asia Today Ltd. Star India was now free to produce programmes in Hindi in an attempt to target local audiences and lure Zee's viewers away.
Star India would not be Zee's only competition in the coming years. Both international and regional broadcasters ate away at Zee's market share, some substantially.
In 2006, Essel separated Zee Telefilms Ltd into three companies: Zee News Ltd, the group's news broadcasting subsidiary; Wire & Wireless India Ltd (later renamed to Siti Networks), the cable distribution subsidiary; and Zee Telefilms Ltd, which remained the group's direct consumer broadcasting arm.[22] (Just a year later, Zee Telefilms Ltd was renamed Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd, and in 2013 Zee News Ltd became Zee Media Corporation Ltd.)[15][23]
Zee Telefilms was trying at this time to enter Indian
After years of failing to get cricket broadcasting rights, in 2007 the Zee firms funded their own
In 2016, Zee decided to cut its losses and sold all its sport broadcasting assets to Sony.[27] The joint distribution venture with Turner India ended in 2018.[20]
By 2019, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) was Essel Group's only profit-generating company; the group had accumulated an overall debt of around ₹20,000 crore (equivalent to ₹250 billion or US$3.1 billion in 2023).
Assets
Zee Media Corporation (4.34% stake)
News Media | |
Headquarters | Mumbai, Maharashtra, India |
---|---|
Key people | Jawahar Goel (Editor-in-chief) |
Brands | Zee News, Daily News and Analysis |
Revenue | ₹640 crore (US$80 million)[30] (2020) |
₹−273 crore (US$−34 million)[30] (2020) | |
Number of employees | 1,719[30] (2020) |
Website | www |
Footnotes / references [31] |
The Zee Media Corporation Limited (abbreviated as ZMCL; formerly Zee News Limited) is the
It was involved in a joint venture with the
The Zee Media Corporation was formerly a subsidiary of the Zee Telefilms Ltd (later renamed to Zee Entertainment Enterprises) and existed under the name of Zee News Limited. It was demerged as a separate company of the Essel Group in 2006.[22] The Zee News Limited was renamed to Zee Media Corporation in 2013.[23]
Operated channels By Zee Media Corporation
Channel | Launched | Language | Category | SD/HD availability | Notes |
Zee News | 1999 | Hindi
|
News | SD | HD version coming soon |
Zee Bharat | 2017 | ||||
Zee Business
|
2005 | ||||
Zee 24 Ghanta
|
2007 | Bengali | |||
Zee Kannada | 2006 | Kannada | |||
WION
|
2016 | English | HD version coming soon | ||
Zee 24 Taas
|
2007 | Marathi | |||
Zee 24 Kalak
|
2017 | Gujarati | |||
Zee Rajasthan
|
2013 | Hindi
|
|||
Zee Uttar Pradesh Uttarakhand | 2017 | ||||
Zee Madhya Pradesh Chhattisgarh | 2017 | ||||
Zee Punjab Haryana Himachal
|
2013 | ||||
Zee Bihar Jharkhand
|
2017 | ||||
Zee Salaam
|
2010 | Urdu
|
Defunct/Former channels
Channel | Language | Category | SD/HD availability | Notes |
Zee 24 Gantalu
|
Telugu | News | SD | |
Zee Odisha
|
Odia | News | SD |
Siti Networks (6.1% stake)
Siti Networks Limited (abbreviated as SNL; formerly Wire & Wireless India Limited; alternatively Siti Cable) is the multi-system operator of the Essel Group.[37] It provides cable distribution services for household consumption. Established in 1994 as a subsidiary of the Zee Telefilms Ltd (later renamed to Zee Entertainment Enterprises),[16] it was founded as a separate company of the Essel Group following the de-merger of the Zee Telefilms in 2006.[22]
In October 2021, it was reported that promotes have just 6.1% stake left in Siti Networks.[38]
Dish TV (4.04% stake)
DishTV India Limited (abbreviated as DTIL, stylised as dishtv) is a
In May 2021, it was reported that promoters' shareholding in Dish TV has fallen to just 5.67% and Yes Bank has become biggest stock owner of Dish TV.[42] The shareholding further fell to 4.04% by 2023.
Zee Entertainment Enterprises (3.99% stake)
The Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (abbreviated as ZEEL; formerly Zee Telefilms Limited) is a media and entertainment broadcasting company.[43] It was the primary profit generating company of the Essel Group.[28] It owns a constellation of entertainment channels under the brand name of Zee and the channels under the brands of Living Entertainment, Big and "&".[44] The Zee Entertainment Enterprise also owns and operates the record label of Zee Music Company and the film studio of Zee Studios.[45]
The company was incorporated in 1992 as the Zee Telefilms Limited, the Essel Group's venture into mass media. It launched its flagship television channel, Zee TV on 1 October 1992.[13] In 2006, two subsidiaries of the company were de-merged from the Zee Telefilms Ltd and segregated as distinct ententes under the Essel Group. Zee News Ltd (later renamed to Zee Media Corporation) became the news broadcasting subsidiary of the group while Wire & Wireless India Limited (later renamed to Siti Networks) became the cable distribution company of the group. Following the segregation, Zee Telefilms was rebranded as to Zee Entertainment Enterprises.[22]
Between 2002–2018, the Zee Entertainment Enterprises was involved a joint venture with american distribution brand
As of 2020, the company has suffered successive reduction in revenue and has been subjected to investigative probes by the Enforcement Directorate.[47][48] The Essel Group has divested a part of its shares in the company for the repayment of pending dues, reducing its stake in the company to 22.37% with much of the remaining stake still pledged as collateral to the remaining dues.[8]
In September 2021 ZEEL Announced merger with
In October 2021, it was reported that founder
On December 22 board of
Zee Learn (15.05% stake)
The Zee Learn Limited (abbreviated as ZLL; informally referred to as Zee Schools) is the
Others
The group owned and operated amusement parks of "Essel World" and "Water Kingdom" in Mumbai.[54]Essel World was one of the first amusement parks in India, it was shut down in April 2023[14]
The Shirpur Gold Refinery uses the brand name of Zee Gold in a joint venture with the Essel Group for the marketing of the refinery's products; the Essel Group gets royalties of 20% on the net profit for the brand usage.[55]The Refinery recently went public diluting Essel Group's stake to 43.66%.[56]
The group also operated the online lottery Playwin in Sikkim.[57] The lottery however ceased operation in 2020, following the sale of assets by the Essel Group for the repayment of pending debts.[58]
Essel Group had founded and operated Essel Propack until sale of their stake in 2019.
Controversy
Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (Dispute between Promoters)
On 11 September 2021, Invesco asked Zee management to call an "extraordinary general meeting" (EGM) of shareholders to consider its demands. One of the main demands was the removal of Punit Goenka, son of the Zee Network founder.[59] However the Zee board rejected the demand from Invesco to convene an extraordinary general meeting.[60] Invesco Developing Market Funds Moves to a National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and the Bombay High Court, seeking a mandatory order for Zee Enterprises Entertainment Limited (ZEEL) to call the extraordinary general meeting (EGM) that the shareholder has been demanding.[61][62]
OFI Global China Fund, who also moved the NCLT along with Invesco, remarked at the hearing that the meeting that Zee Entertainment board had conducted on October 1 was just a legal formality and that it is a classic case of Forum shopping.
On 11 October 2021, Invesco[63] wrote an open letter to the other shareholders saying they are disappointed that the leadership of Zee has resorted to a reckless public relations campaign in response to the overwhelming demand from shareholders for leadership changes at Zee network. They had also tried to merge Zee with some other Indian company in early 2021, but the Zee board rejected it.
The Zee Board replied to Invesco's open letter saying they didn't care about the company, and Invesco is not motivated by concerns related to any corporate governance issue,[64] but "by the events that transpired during February-April 2021 pointing Invesco purposed deal with Reliance Industries.[65]
Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) said it proposed to merge all its media properties with Zee Entertainment at fair valuations during discussions in February and March 2021 that US investment firm Invesco helped arrange with managing director and member of the founding family of the media and entertainment company.
On 21 October, the Bombay High Court asked the Zee board to call an EGM as demanded by shareholder Invesco, and counsel appearing for Zee Entertainment said the company will inform the court of the date of the EGM by the morning of October 22.[66][67]
On 7 December, Invesco heading towards a resolution, Invesco was expected to back the merger deal with Sony as long as the Goenka family does not get any preferential equity.[68]
On 22 December, board of
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