(Reuters) -Japan’s Sony is planning to scrap the merger of its Indian unit with Zee Entertainment, more than two years after the deal was announced, over a disagreement on who will lead the $10 billion entity, Bloomberg News reported on Monday.
Sony plans to file a termination notice before the extended Jan. 20 deadline to close the merger, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. It added that discussions between Sony and Zee were still ongoing.
Zee and Sony did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
The deal to merge Zee and Sony’s TV channels, streaming platforms and film assets has been delayed after India’s markets regulator, in August, barred Punit Goenka, Zee CEO and a candidate to lead the merged entity, from directorships of any listed company.
An Indian tribunal, however, lifted the ban on Goenka in October but said he would have to cooperate with any investigation by the country’s markets regulator.
In November, Sony pushed for N.P. Singh, the managing director of its Indian operations, to head the merged company, instead of Goenka, local business daily Mint had reported.
(Reporting by Abinaya Vijayaraghavan in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri and Savio D’Souza)
