IPL-12 may earn over ₹2,000 cr for Star India

NEWDELHI:IPL’s official TV broadcaster is expected to earn over ~2,000 crore from on-air brand partnerships, according to media buyers and advertisers. This would mark a 15% increase from last year when Star India, the broadcaster, earned ~1,800 crore in ad sales from IPL’s 11th season. This year’s edition of the professional Twenty20 cricket league will start from March 23.

Early negotiations between advertisers and Star India indicate ad rates will range from ~5.5 lakh to ~13 lakh for a 10-second spot. E-commerce firm Flipkart’s mobile payments arm, PhonePe, has signed an ad deal with Star India, confirmed a person close to the development. Star India’s on-air media inventory had 80 brand sponsorship deals last year. The brand partnerships included with Vodafone, Amazon, PepsiCo India, Mondelez India, Samsung, Nivea etc . Star India will have to compete with news channels, which make a killing in terms of advertising revenue in the run-up to national elections. IPL will be hosted in India during election for the first time. It was held in South Africa in view of the national elections in 2009. A part of the IPL was held in the UAE because of the same reason five years later. Star India will also air the cricket World Cup between May 30 and July 14.

Global corporate financial advisory firm Duff and Phelps’s managing director and India lead, Varun Gupta, said the IPL 2019 is expected to continue to give good returns to its stakeholders as in previous years. “Though there is an anticipation of revenue decline on account of general elections to be held during this time, it may not be significant.”

The IPL’s brand value soared 19% to touch $630 crore in 2018 from $530 crore a year earlier on the back of renewed broadcast deal, a controversy-free tournament and the presence of marquee players across franchises, according to a latest Duff & Phelps report. “If we look back at IPL 7 [in 2014], when the last general elections were held, even though almost half of the matches were played in the Middle-East, it did not have any major impact on the revenues earned by the franchisees,’’ said Gupta. He added most franchisees demonstrated a substantial revenue growth in that year vis-à-vis IPL 6. “Since it has been confirmed that the tournament will not be moved outside India, it will put the franchisees and broadcasters in a better position while negotiating deals with sponsors and advertisers.” Gupta added it would also ensure the gate receipts remain steady.

Media buyers and advertisers echoed Gupta. Media buying agency Dentsu Aegis Network Media India Pvt Ltd’s chairman and chief executive (South Asia), Ashish Bhasin, called IPL a strong property with universal appeal. “It has been growing year-on-year. There is no reason to believe that this trend will change.” Bhasin added digital consumption will be more important going forward. “While news channel viewership will soar during the budget and close to the counting day, it is not something viewers will track minute by minute. So it is not comparable to IPL’s cliffhanger moments.”

A leading advertiser associated with T20 league, who spoke on condition of anonymity, noted the IPL is not purely sports. “Its packaged entertainment; it combines cricket and entertainment.” The advertising executive cited above said consumption could be fragmented because of World Cup and elections but IPL is still a unique advertising proposition. Media buyers estimate that advertising on news channels could spike by ~250 crore in April and May due to a surge in viewership because of elections.

Star India, is also planning to air all weekend IPL matches on their flagship general entertainment channel, Star Gold. Media buyers say Star India’s video streaming platform, Hotstar, is expected to earn close to ~500 crore. Last year, it made ~200 crore from ads. IPL has also gained in terms of on-ground and team sponsorship. According to estimates, BCCI is expected to earn nearly ~576 crore worth sponsorship through on-ground deals. The board has partnered with Vivo as title sponsor (~440 crore per year), Paytm as umpire partner (~30 crore), Future Group (~42 crore), Tata Motors (~40 crore) and Ceat Tyres (~24 crore) as strategic time-out partners.