Prolonged, intense merger-related activity affected business and operations: ZEEL Chairman

Prolonged, intense merger-related activity affected business and operations: ZEEL Chairman

The Board has also resolved to keep a close eye on the business plan and model that the MD and CEO of the company have presented. In this plan, they have offered a road map for enhancing each firm's productivity and efficiency in order to increase EBITDA.

ZEEL said last month that its consolidated total income for the third quarter, which ended in December 2023 at Rs 2,073.36 crore, decreased by 2.36 percent.

Although the intensive and protracted merger-related activities have affected operations and business, Zee Entertainment Chairman R Gopalan said that the firm has already taken many initiatives to safeguard all stakeholders and boost its inherent value during this time.

During the introductory speech at Zee Entertainment Enterprise Ltd.'s (ZEEL) investor conference call, Gopalan said that there is "significant room for growth in performance" and that the management team is already carrying out a revival plan to boost profitability and accelerate growth. It is being carried out. Monday.

The Board has also resolved to keep a close eye on the business plan and model that the MD and CEO of the company have presented. In this plan, they have offered a road map for enhancing each firm's productivity and efficiency in order to increase EBITDA. "The board has complete confidence in the team's ability to execute, and we are fully aware that there is considerable scope for improvement in performance. The ZEEL management team is already executing a revival plan to accelerate growth and enhance profitability," he stated.

According to him, ZEEL's performance has suffered since 2020 as a result of the macro downturn in the sector as a whole, transient problems, and managerial bandwidth limitations brought on by merger activity. "In the last few years, the merger-related activities have been intense alongside prolonged, taking up time, energy, and supervisors bandwidth, impacting operations and business," he said, adding that Zee had previously merged with Sony Pictures Networks India, which could create a US$10.5 billion media entity. reportedly have been primarily three challenges that have impacted performance since 2020," he said. nation.

However, Sony Group shut it down in January, and as a result, both parties are now enmeshed in arbitration and legal disputes. Gopalan claims that ZEEL is a cash-generating company with a strong brand, a competitive advantage, and a debt-free balance sheet. In the context of Indian M&E, ZEEL is a strategic asset that is well-positioned, he said. In addition to leading the sector, ZEEL has long been an extremely cost-effective operator, routinely defeating well-funded multinational corporations. Has been.

ZEEL said last month that its consolidated total income for the third quarter, which ended in December 2023 at Rs 2,073.36 crore, had decreased by 2.36 percent. Gopalan said that the ZEEL board and management were totally committed to completing the transaction, despite it failing. Combination via a number of long-term, irreversible actions. Puneet Goenka also consented to resign in order to support the merger. He said, "Yet, Sony unilaterally terminated the merger cooperation agreement and started legal proceedings with its communication dated 22 January 2024." Gopalan referred to Sony's unilateral action as "premature" and said that ZEEL was pursuing good-faith negotiations and taking the required actions to guarantee the merger plan's prompt implementation.