Eros ‘in talks’ with Apple to sell its content library

Mumbai, August 7

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Indian movie production house Eros Group is in preliminary talks with Apple and other major content distributors to sell its entire content library of films and music, a source familiar with the matter said today.

The other parties in the fray include Amazon and Netflix, but talks are in very early stages, said the source, who declined to be named as the discussions are private.

Sources familiar with the matter said the deal could be worth around $1 billion.

A spokeswoman for Eros was not reachable for comment. Apple said it does not comment on speculation, while a spokeswoman for Amazon also declined to comment on what she called “rumour and speculation”. Netflix also declined to comment on the matter.

The talks come at a time when major global content streaming companies are jockeying to boost local Indian television, movie and music offerings in a bid to lure millions of users coming online in the world’s fastest growing Internet services market.

Netflix and Amazon have both been working aggressively on securing exclusive Indian content for their respective platforms that both launched in the country last year. Eros began exploring strategic options about six months ago for its Indian content library, a sources said.

The source, who also asked not to be named, said Eros attempted to work out deals with a number of top domestic broadcasters including Sony, Star, Viacom and Zee.

Apple, which recently began assembling some of its lower-end iPhones in India, has been vying to boost market share in the price-conscious Indian market. Apple’s iPhones currently account for only a small sliver of the smartphones sold in the country. — Reuters