Amazon Seeks to Acquire MX Player from Times Internet In January 2018, Times Internet acquired MX Player for a sum of USD 140 million.
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Amazon looks to be extremely close to acquiring MX Player, which is owned by Times Internet. This is Amazon's second attempt to acquire the video streaming service, and it appears that negotiations are nearly complete.
In March of last year, Times Internet-owned firm and Amazon India had also had talks, but the conversations broke down over a price disagreement.
According to the media sources, after evaluating MX Player, the Amazon team estimated its worth at about INR 500 crore (about USD 60 million), whereas Times Internet demanded more than USD 100 million.
In January 2018, Times Internet acquired MX Player for a sum of USD 140 million.
"The two parties are close to a deal now. MX Player's value has decreased due to its poor financial condition. However, MX Player, which has over INR 2,500 crore in debt, will need to handle this debt itself. Amazon won't take it on," one of the sources said (according to Share Price India reports).
Amazon already offers two video services in India: Amazon miniTV, a free service with advertisements that was introduced in May 2021, and Prime Video, a subscription-based service.
With an Amazon Prime membership, you may access Prime Video, which caters to affluent consumers and provides extra features like free shipping and music without advertisements.
A larger audience with smartphones and internet access is the objective of MiniTV, which is accessible through the Amazon shopping app.
Amazon's ad-supported video business would benefit from the addition of MX Player. Currently, MX Player claims to have over 300 million users globally.
Even with this growth, MX Player has had trouble making enough money to support its expansion. In February of last year, Times Internet sold MX Takatak to ShareChat; in May 2022, it sold Dineout to Swiggy; and in December, it sold lifestyle publications MensXP and iDiva, as well as an influencer marketing company called Hypp, to Mensa Brands.
