Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA) has sold its 13% stake in Indian streaming company Viacom18 to Reliance Industries for US$517 million.
This comes just two weeks after Reliance, which was already Viacom18’s majority shareholder, agreed to merge the streaming service with Disney’s Indian television business in a US$8.5 billion deal.
Disney will take on a 36.8% share of a new joint venture created through the deal, while Reliance and Viacom will own 16.3% and 46.8% respectively.
Paramount’s sale of the 13.01% stake in Viacom to Reliance emerged in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing on Wednesday.
Though this is still subject to regulatory approval, Paramount will continue to license its content to Viacom18, according to the filing.
The move comes as Paramount struggles to prop up its balance sheet, having ended last year with US$14.6 billion worth of long-term debt.