By AltG Investment Research Lab
Zee’s comeback and value unlock hinges on only one thing - Realising that the future of media and Zee is in technology and not content. The business landscape in Zee’s area of focus in broadcast, digital, movies and music is transforming rapidly. Outsiders view technology as an enabler for a media business such as Zee, we see technology as being the main driver for Zee.
Zee’s Comeback Hinges On Shifting Its Focus From a Media To A Technology Company
People with knowledge of the matter see the current state of Zee as an inevitable end to a business model they believe is now out of fashion — run by non-technology owners who only “see” the media business. This is in line with how people viewed Dell as a hardware business till Michael Dell along with Silverlake took Dell private in a landmark deal to focus on “Enterprise solutions and software”
What is working for Zee?
High-growth assets within the business - need to be used to unlock massive value.
Zee won’t grow using the assets it used earlier, as the future looks absolutely different. The broadcast, digital, movies, and music businesses need different visions and an innate ability to move downstream and upstream to unlock value. Zee has multiple Crown Jewels; unlocking value needs a new vision.
The bigger question is, given that Zee has Brands, Scale, and Distribution Infrastructure set up, how is it using technology to leverage the existing capacity to create the 21st-century Zee?
Content and Media Are Colliding with Technology. The fact that Zee runs an undifferentiated streaming business, ZEE5 while bleeding cash, shows an inherent inability to leverage its strengths vis-a-vis its competitors. The 21st-century Zee needs to play the “Content Game,” where it can win, and the “Distribution Game,” where it has an edge.
In the 21st Century, the ability to deliver the product online either directly or via Joint Ventures matters. The talent wants to talk directly, and as we know, technology dislocations create massive opportunities.
As content owners think about new ways to distribute and monetise, Zee, both as an owner and distribution channel, has massive opportunities to make plays.
Zee’s sum of parts is greater than the whole. However, if Zee were to embrace its new avatar as a Technology Platform, we’d be talking about a $10 Billion Unlock. The $5 Billion Apollo—Yahoo Deal in the US has shown what legacy brands are worth. Zee’s worth Billions of Dollars more, so who’s playing?
Conclusion:
“This could be a new era for Zee,” Taponeel says. “This is an exciting time of renewed opportunity for Zee as a leading media company. AltG anticipates that the coming months and years will bring fresh growth and innovation for Zee as a business and a brand if it makes the right moves today”
Disclaimer: In the article "Can One Of India’s Largest Media Empire, Zee, Be Saved? AltG’s Investment Research Lab On How To Rebuild The Media Icon" above - Any views, comments or communication (above or in the past) should not be construed to be investment advice by Alternative Growth (hereafter referred to as “AltG”) in any form whatsoever. AltG does not make an offer to sell or solicit to buy any securities.