WHAT’S ON THE PLATE?
The first of the 4 packages will be the TV rights for the Indian sub-continent while the second will be the digital rights for the same. The sale of these two packages is going to be huge for the BCCI with never-seen-before prices, according to industry experts. The third, a first in the IPL media rights history, will see the sale of package for 18 matches, which constitute the non-exclusive digital package. The fourth is the overseas TV and digital rights.
The base price for the 4 packages is as follows:
Package A – Rs 49 crore per match
Package B – Rs 33 crore per match
Package C – Rs 11 crore per game
Package D – Rs 3 crore per game
Currently, there are 74 matches, including 4 playoffs in the IPL after the addition of 2 new teams in 2022. The number of games, according to the BCCI sources, might go up to 84 or 94 in the coming years which will make the media rights even costlier. Put together, the BCCI is expecting a minimum sum of Rs 32,440 crore while the revenue from the bidding could go in excess of Rs 40,000 crore.
Star India saw off competition from Sony Pictures Networks India, Facebook, and Bharti Airtel in 2017 to win the media rights for IPL between 2018 and 2022, which was close to 160 percent more than the sum paid for the previous cycle.
The battle has intensified this time around with the likes of Reliance Industries-owned Viacom18 Joint Venture with Lupa Systems, which is spearheaded by Uday Shankar and James Murdoch, Walt Disney (Star), Zee, and Sony being the 4 major players, having a solid footprint in both TV and digital sectors.