Music label giant Saregama acquires stake in Pocket Aces

India's oldest music label company Saregama has agreed to acquire a 51.82 per cent stake in the startup Pocket Aces as the company expands into new music.

In a stock exchange filing, Saregama mentioned that is paying about $20 million for a 51.82 per cent stake in Pocket Aces and plans to invest an additional $1.8 million in the startup.

The news was first reported by TechCrunch.

The music label also said that it intends to acquire up to 92.61 per cent of Pocket Aces in the future and will set the price based on the completion of certain metrics.

Pocket Aces primarily create short-form video content aimed at young Indians, with over 30 new items added every day.

The popularity of its shows has skyrocketed in recent years due to its typical comedic content and its ability to address real-world issues.

The startup manages over 100 digital talents and has licensed IPs like "Little Things" to Netflix. They have also shared content with platforms such as Jio, MX Player, Vistara, and Qatar Airways.

According to its website, Pocket Aces reaches 50 million viewers weekly and accumulates 700 million views monthly.

In February, Pocket Aces laid off 50 employees or about 20 per cent of its workforce as part of a corporate restructuring drive.