Rhiti Sports inks joint venture with Endemol-"Obviously, Dhoni would have a significant role to play."

Rhiti Sports inks joint venture with Endemol

(GOOD WISHES TO MR M S DHONI FOR THESE NEW VENTURE IN MEDIA ARENA.I AM MENTIONING HIM AS HAVE WRITTEN LITTLE BIT ABOUT HIM.FROM MY SIDE HIS CHAPTER IS CLOSED.I'LL WISH HIM AND HIS FAMILY A BRIGHT FUTURE.AS A CAPTAIN OF TEAM,MY GOOD WISHES -AS A SPORTS APPRECIATER IS ALWAYS WITH HIM,OUR INDIAN TEAM AND PLAYERS!!!....VIBHA)

NEW DELHI: Rhiti Sports, the firm that manages M S Dhoni’s business account, has entered into a five-year JV with the maker of Bigg Boss, Endemol, through its separate media entity—Inspired Entertainment. Rhiti Sports president Arun Pandey confirmed the development. "The deal has been signed and we would soon announce our big moves,'' he said.

Despite repeated attempts, Endemol India managing director Deepak Dhar could not be reached for comment.

"The alliance will produce television shows not just in the genre of sports, but also in general entertainment. It will also organise events, brand activation programmes and produce feature films," said Inspired Entertainment director Manav Dhanda, refusing to elaborate on Dhoni's role in the new company. However, a person close to the deal said, "Obviously, Dhoni would have a significant role to play."

One of world’s largest independent television production companies, Endemol has produced reality shows such as Big Brother in the UK, and Bigg Boss and Khatron ke Kiladi in India. The Amsterdam-headquartered TV production firm has guaranteed that the alliance would generate revenue of at least Rs 250 crore in five years.

Rhiti Sports Management had inked a three-year deal with India cricket captain Dhoni to manage all his endorsements , brand associations, patents and digital rights, on a minimum guarantee of Rs 210 crore for three years. Through Rhiti Sports, Dhoni renewed an existing endorsement deal with Maxx Mobile for seven years for Rs 29 crore last month. The Maxx deal was announced within days of Dhoni signing a record deal with Vijay Mallya’s United Breweries group, for which he will endorse McDowell’s No 1 soda. That three-year deal is estimated at Rs 26 crore.

Endemol, which runs 80 companies across 26 countries including the US, the UK, Spain, Italy, France, Germany and the Netherlands, annually produces 40,000 hours of television content. As per the company’s website, it generates € 200 million euros annually through scripted shows and plans to focus on this genre extensively in the future. The group’s portfolio spans entertainment genres such as drama, comedy, reality TV, sport, talent shows and game shows.