BENGALURU, April 30 (Reuters) - Tata Sons, the holding company of

India's Tata Group, has increased its stake in satellite TV provider Tata Play

to 70% by buying a 10% stake from Singapore state investment firm Temasek for

about $100 million, the Economic Times reported on Tuesday.

Tata Play has informed the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting about

the change in shareholding, complying with regulations governing direct-to-home

(DTH) companies, according to the report, which cited people familiar with the

matter.

With Temasek's exit, Tata Play will operate as a 70:30 joint venture between

Tata and Walt Disney, the latter inheriting its stake from the

acquisition of Star India via the purchase of 21st Century Fox's India assets.

Despite a decrease in valuation from its pre-pandemic target of $3 billion

to $1 billion, Tata Play, which also offers video streaming, remains crucial for

the for Tata Group as its main consumer-facing business in the media and

entertainment sector.

Talks between Tata Sons and Disney about the latter's stake are underway,

with Disney looking to exit Tata Play since DTH is not core to its business, the

Economic Times said.

Plans for both Temasek and Disney to exit Tata Play through an IPO were

postponed due to market conditions and challenges in the DTH sector, according

to the report.

Tata Play had received approval from India's market regulator for its

proposed public issue in May 2023.

In February, Reliance Industries and Disney announced the merger

of their India TV and streaming media assets, creating an $8.5 billion

entertainment juggernaut.