During the auction on Thursday, August 31, Disney Star, Sony Sports, and Viacom18 battled it out for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) media rights. According to the most recent information, Viacom 18 has been awarded the TV and digital rights to Team India’s home matches.
With regard to the media rights, Viacom 18 will sign a five-year agreement with the BCCI from 2023 to 2028. The auction had a “free for all” rule for the uninitiated, whereby the bidding would go on until just one person was left at the table. The rule additionally allowed consortiums to participate in the bidding process.
It is important to note that the BCCI offered two separate packages when selling the media rights. The base price for package A (for TV) was INR 20 crore, while the base price for package B (for digital and the rest of the globe) was INR 25 crore.
According to a report by CNBC TV18, the apex body also anticipates a rise in the number of games in the upcoming cycle, which would directly affect viewership and financial returns. In the upcoming cycle, India will also host two major cricketing giants, Australia and England. 39 of India’s 88 home matches in the cycle will be against one of the two cricketing giants.
With the addition of the additional partners, JioCinema, a Viacom18-owned OTT streaming service, will broadcast the India matches on its app and website in addition to on television. As a result of winning the media rights for INR 6,138 crore, Disney Star had previously controlled the media rights for both the TV and internet channels.
In terms of the national squad, India is getting ready to face archrival Pakistan in their opening game of the Asia Cup 2023. On September 2, the Babar Azam and Company team will face the Rohit Sharma-led team at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy.
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