Google in Advanced Talks to Invest $4 Billion in Jio Platforms

Google is in advanced talks to buy a $4 billion stake in Jio Platforms owned by Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s technology venture according to a report by Bloomberg.

Google has been discussing the investment in Reliance Industries Ltd.’s digital arm, Jio Platforms Ltd., the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. An announcement could come as soon as the next few weeks, according to the people.

Bloomberg says Google is seeking to join rival Facebook in the chase for growth in a promising internet market.

Jio is at the center of the Indian tycoon’s ambition to transform his energy conglomerate into a homegrown technology behemoth — something on the lines of China’s Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. The venture has turned into a magnet for Silicon Valley investors, attracting almost $16 billion from Facebook to KKR & Co. in the past three months.

Should the talks with Google result in a deal, that would further burnish Jio’s credentials in its push to upend online retail, content streaming, digital payments, education and health care in a market of more than a billion people.

Global technology leaders from Facebook to Intel Corp. are looking for multiple ways to grab a slice of the action in the South Asian country, where millions of first-time internet users are added every month.

Jio Platforms, which boasts almost 400 million users through its wireless network, offers the largest base of such users who are increasingly buying merchandise online and downloading music and video, using cheap smartphones and Jio’s own cut-price data services.

Details of the potential deal with Google could change, and negotiations could still be delayed or fall apart, the people said. Representatives for Google and Reliance didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

The string of investments in Jio has spurred a rally in the shares of parent Reliance. The stock has more than doubled from their March 23 low, rewarding investors who will get to hear Ambani, 63, layout the road map for the future of the group at the annual shareholders meeting on Wednesday.

Just like Facebook, Google is expanding its presence in the Indian market. On Monday, the company said it plans to spend $10 billion over the next five to seven years to help accelerate the adoption of digital technologies in the country. The amount could be put into partnerships and equity investments among others, it said.

Sundar Pichai, who was born in the country and is now chief executive officer of Google’s parent Alphabet Inc., said the outbreak of the coronavirus has made clear the importance of technology for conducting business and for connecting with friends and family.