Sony, Zee clashed over Russia assets, cricket deal before deal collapse

NEW DELHI: Sony and Zee disagreed over more than 20 compliance issues, including the Indian firm's failure to dispose of some Russian assets and its $1.4 billion Disney cricket rights deal, before their India merger was scrapped, according to internal emails reviewed by Reuters. The communications between Sony's legal and M&A executives in India and Los Angeles with top Zee executives provide undisclosed details on the high-stakes backroom tussle that preceded the Japanese firm's Jan.

22 decision to pull the plug on the $10 billion merger. Emails exchanged between December 20 and January 9 show executives from both companies accusing each other of not honouring the merger commitments. Zee executives repeatedly said that there was nothing out of line, and asked Sony to extend the closure deadline. "A number of events, circumstances, state of facts, conditions have occurred, which have, or are reasonably likely to have a 'material adverse effect' on the business, operations," Drew Shearer, a top Los Angeles-based Sony executive wrote in an email.