Meanwhile, in its clarification to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) yesterday regarding a news report in Economic Times titled "Sony likely to buy Ten Sports from Zee Entertainment for about Rs 2000 cr", Zee had stated that it was at an advanced stage of discussion for sale of the sports business with potential buyer(s). Zee further said that the sale talks were part of the ongoing process of "exploring various strategic options for entering into new business and/or exiting/ restructuring existing businesses" in order to maximise shareholder returns. Commenting on the occassion, NP Singh, CEO, Sony Pictures Networks India said, "I welcome TEN Sports to the Sony family. The acquisition of TEN Sports Network will strengthen SPN's offering for viewers of cricket, football and fight sports, complementing our existing portfolio of international and domestic sporting properties.