Press Release | New Delhi/Mumbai, 06/27/2014

Bertelsmann Invests in Indian Digital Fund

Bertelsmann is teaming up with renowned investors in India: The international media and services company is investing a multi-million-dollar amount in Digital Nirvana Fund Co. Ltd. The fund invests specifically in young start-ups from the digital domain and is led by the Indian venture capital company Nirvana Venture Advisors, which manages two funds with a total endowment of $40.5 million.

Shobhna Mohn, Executive Vice President Emerging Markets at Bertelsmann, said: “Expanding our business in India is an important part of Bertelsmann’s growth strategy. We now have holdings, with three partners, in renowned funds in India that focus on the digital or education sectors, which are important to our strategy. We are also and simultaneously investing directly in selected companies that are of strategic relevance for us.”

Pankaj Makkar, Managing Director of Bertelsmann India Investments, added: “The digital markets in India are growing rapidly so we see great potential for us here. Our partnership with Digital Nirvana Fund helps strengthen our position in this space as it gives us early-stage access to promising business models and the best entrepreneurs in the country.”

Rajan Mehra, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Nirvana Venture Advisors, said: “Bertelsmann is one of the most prestigious media companies in the world and pursues the same goals as we do in India – to shape the digital markets and support the country’s fast-growing companies – so we are very pleased to be working with them.”

Besides its investments in various funds, Bertelsmann now has direct holdings in three companies in India: thee-commerce platform Pepperfry, the real estate portal Indiaproperty, and Authorgen Technologies with its online education platform Wiziq.com. In addition, Bertelsmann has successfully done business in India for many years via its divisions: Fremantle Media, the production unit of the RTL Group, produces shows like “Indian Idol,” “The X Factor” and “Got Talent” in India. The book-publishing subsidiary Penguin Random House India is the country’s largest English-language trade book publisher, and
Gruner + Jahr is a leading corporate publisher. Arvato India has been active in customer & marketing services and in e-commerce since 2003. Bertelsmann currently employs approximately 2,000 people in India.

About Bertelsmann
Bertelsmann is an international media company whose core divisions encompass television (RTL Group), book publishing (Penguin Random House), magazine publishing (Gruner + Jahr), services (Arvato), and printing (Be Printers) in some 50 countries. In 2013, the company’s businesses, with their more than 111,000 employees, generated revenues of €16.4 billion. Bertelsmann stands for a combination of creativity and entrepreneurship that empowers the creation of first-rate media, communications, and service offerings to inspire people around the world and to provide innovative solutions for customers.