Viacom18 have bagged the BCCI media rights for bilateral cricket matches to be played in India over the course of the following five years. Disney Star and Sony Sports Network were left trailing in the wake of the Mukesh Ambani backed broadcast giants. It is believed that Viacom18 will pay Rs 67.8 Crore for each match.
BCCI Media Rights Auction: What we know so far
- BCCI Media rights were sold via an e-auction on Thursday, August 31.
- Broadcast and Digital packages sold separately, priced at Rs 20 crore and Rs 25 crore per match respectively.
- Viacom 18 purchased both TV and Digital Rights.
- Sports 18 will broadcast all India domestic and international home games.
- The live streaming will be on the JioCinema app.
- The new cycle comprises 88 games, including 25 Tests, 27 ODIs, and 36 T20Is
- Viacom18 have bagged the rights at Rs 67.8 crore per game
- While the highlight of the deal is India Men’s Cricket Team, broadcasters will also bag women’s bilateral rights for free.
BCCI walked away with the IPL (Indian Premier League) rights for the cycle 2023–27, valued at 48,390 crore. Included in that were payments of Rs. 23,575 crore (for TV rights) from Disney Star and Rs. 23,757 crore (for exclusive digital rights) from Viacom18.
However, given the dip in popularity of bilateral series, BCCI had lowered their expectations. Despite managing to bag Rs 60 crore per game in 2018, the Indian cricket board had set the base price at 45 crore.
Viacom18, who have taken the sports broadcast indutry by storm, bagged both the TV and Digital rights. The Mukesh Ambani backed company were always the favourties for the digital rights, but have signalled their intent by becoming the new home of Indian cricket. Viacom have agreed to pay Rs 67.8 crore per game.
Disney Star, the previous owners, were unlikley to lossen their purse strings. Having suffered heavy losses over the last few years, the Walt Disney company have de-prioritized their operations in India.
India will play 88 matches over the course of the next five years under the current FTP (future tour programme), featuring 25 Tests, 27 ODIs, and 36 T20Is.
Sony were expected to be major players but have lost out again. They had ran Viacom18 cloe for the IPL digital rights, and were expected to be strong contenders following their merger with Zee. However, they eventually deicded against it, with Viacom18 becoming the new home of Indian cricket.
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