(Reuters) - Reliance Industries and Walt Disney on Thursday completed the $8.5 billion merger of their Indian media assets, which have been split into three divisions, with each unit having its own CEO.

Reliance Industries and Disney completed their long-awaited media merger, creating an Indian powerhouse valued at $8.5 billion.

The head of Disney and Reliance Industries’ newly merged $8.5bn Indian entertainment titan plans to invest and “revitalise” television in the world’s most populous country even as western media organisations increasingly see it as a dying medium.

The joint venture has combined revenue of $3.1 billion and over 100 TV channels, 50 million subscribers, and 30,000 hours of TV entertainment content annually

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and Disney (NYSE:DIS) have received final approvals from competition regulators based in Mumbai for their $8.5B Indian joint initiative, which will leverage over 100 TV channels and have access to over 50M subscribers on digital streaming platforms and a portfolio of sports rights,

Disney and Reliance Industries have completed the $8.5B deal to form a media and entertainment giant in India. This brings together Reliance’s JioCinema business with Disney’s Star India, which houses Disney+ Hotstar,

Reliance and Disney have completed their landmark Indian media merger, creating an $8.5 billion entertainment powerhouse that will dominate the streaming and television markets in the world's most populous nation.

The $8.5 billion merger of Disney and Reliance Industries was completed on Thursday with Nita Ambani taking over as the Chairperson of the joint venture.