Abu Dhabi blue-chips e&, ADQ complete 57% stake buy in OTT platform Starzplay Arabia
e&'s entertainment arm expects to leverage Starzplay Arabia's reach across MENA
Dubai: The e& entertainment arm E-Vision and ADQ have completed the buy of a 57 per cent stake in the video-on-demand platform Starzplay Arabia. It was in March that the two confirmed the stake buy deal in Starzplay Arabia, which was the first OTT portal to launch in the Gulf in 2015. Since then, it has rolled out the subscription-based video content across multiple markets in the region.
Starzplay Arabia is also focussing intently on locally- and regionally-produced shows to build up the library. Another major foray of the recent past is into sports broadcast.
“This acquisition is in line with e&’s strategy to scale up the entertainment segment of e& life consumer digital vertical by accelerating E-Vision’s development on the video streaming segment,” said a statement.
“It also significantly enhances Starzplay Arabia’s positioning across the entire MENA region.”
For the deal, E-Vision has committed to pay ‘up to’ $130 million in cash and in-kind, ‘including a component linked to an earn out’. The Starzplay Arabia numbers will be included in E-Vision’s financials from this month onwards.
E-Vision will have 66.7 per cent of the stake held along with ADQ, the Abu Dhabi based holding and investment company.