Zee-Sony deal: An Indian media mogul beat a US activist fund. Or did he?

A 70-year-old Indian media magnate was about to lose his crown jewel to a campaign by a US fund manager. But within a week, a Japanese conglomerate, itself a defiant survivor of several challenges by foreign activists, came to Subhash Chandra’s rescue. Asian family values triumphed over American-style corporate governance? Not really. Everybody won — the Indians, the Americans, and, of course, the Japanese.

Privately held Sony Pictures Networks India is merging with publicly traded Zee Entertainment NSE 3.21 % Enterprises Ltd. Sony Group Corp. will control the larger empire, and infuse an additional $1.4 billion of cash into it. But the combined entity will be presided over by Punit Goenka, the current Zee chief executive and founder Chandra’s elder son. What’s more, the family gets an option to raise its near-4% stake to 20%.