IPL Broadcast Battle: A Never-Before-Seen Showdown

Disney-Star is gearing up to fight for a share of the Indian Premier League‘s viewership and advertising, in what will be an unprecedented broadcasting war between it and Viacom18. The ambitious goal set by Disney-Star is to more than double its collaboration with advertisers for the 2023 edition, increasing their presence and influence in India’s top cricket tournament exponentially. With such innovative and aggressive strategies being implemented, it is no wonder that these two companies are considered amongst some of the biggest names in media entertainment. It will certainly be an exciting level of competition to witness!

With Viacom18’s acquisition of the digital rights of IPL for a five year period beginning in this season, it is surely going to shake up the domestic broadcasting market. As Anil Jayaraj, CEO of Viacom18 Sports stated earlier, they plan to achieve success with their ambitious programming plans and tech engagement. Their goal? To make the IPL widely accessible without sacrificing on affordability and language. Even more applause-worthy: they plan on streaming the cricket league for free this year through its over-the-top platform JioCinema. Not only will this be especially convenient for viewers, but it’s sure to revolutionize the way consumers watch their favorite sports events in India.

The upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) season is sure to be an exciting one! Disney-Star, which has the exclusive IPL TV rights for 2023-2027, recently unveiled its ambitious advertising strategy for the T20 league this year. According to Ajit Varghese, head of network ad sales at Disney-Star, the broadcaster is targeting 550-700 advertisers in this edition of the IPL, more than double the number of advertisers during previous years. Hopefully these advertisers will find plenty of value within cricket, allowing them to reach a wide audience and make a positive impact on their business. With so many new advertisers and potential partnerships on the horizon, it looks like this season will be an exciting one indeed!

The BCCI‘s Chief Operating Officer (COO) Susanne Varghese has outlined an ambitious ad strategy in order to tap into a much wider range of advertisers than previous editions of the Indian Premier League (IPL) have managed. Advertisers, both large and small, will be carefully targeted through tailored solutions that are tailored to provide meaningful returns on investment for businesses looking to make the most of the exciting T20 tournament during the summer and holiday period. In particular, Varghese is hopeful that more internet-based businesses and smaller enterprises who previously found investments in cricket too prohibitive can now participate at a heavily reduced cost. With this innovative new strategy, the BCCI team hopes to engage a larger audience than ever before and help grow IPL’s already considerable reach.

Disney-Star is aiming to make IPL a “big-screen experience” with something for everyone, no matter their language or interests. Taking cues from the big football scene in Europe, the network is hoping to use cricket as a way to bring families and friends together with the goal of reaching 500 million viewers across its 22 channels. The 17 Star Sports channels will offer feeds in 10 different languages, allowing viewers from around the world to get a comprehensive and alluring glimpse into the vibrant world of professional cricket. Whether it’s coming together over a few beers for that crucial mid-tournament match or snuggling up on the couch for must-see Sunday afternoon action, this expansion of IPL coverage by Disney-Star could go a long way in bringing people together and creating communities tied to their favorite team.

This year, Star Sports has loaded its programming with a suite of top-notch content and brand integrations that will bring the Indian Premier League (IPL) into your living room. The broadcaster won’t just be presenting the matches, a high definition feed in four languages (English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu) but also a range of fan engagement experiences including the intriguingly titled ‘Star Sports Metaverse’ – a virtual world for fans which combines teleportation technology and visual wizardry – not to mention an exciting line-up of commentators. Those tuning in are guaranteed to get every bit of excitement that they would get at the cricket grounds! With such intense efforts it is no surprise that IPL viewership on television is faring better than ever before.

It is an exciting time for cricket fans in India. Recent viewership ratings data from BARC show an impressive growth rate of 35-45 per cent in viewers for Indian cricket compared to last year, giving an optimistic outlook for the upcoming Indian Premier League season. Aiming to capitalize on this upward trend, Disney-Star and Viacom18 have both announced ambitious marketing strategies targeting various platforms such as television, print and digital media outlets. These intensive campaigns are sure to draw even more attention to the IPL as it gets ever closer, a testament to its ongoing appeal among sports lovers across the nation.

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