ICC T-20 World Cup to bring in big bucks for STAR

This is a marked increase from revenues of previous edition which stood at close to Rs 250 cr

The ICC twenty-20 World Cup cricket tournament ,which began on Sunday and will see the Super 10 league matches flag off with the India-Pakistan tie on Friday, will rake in close to Rs 380 crore for the broadcaster, STAR Sports.

This is a marked increase from the revenue of last year’s edition, of close to Rs 250 crore. The increase is a result of an increase in advertising rates, of nearly 25 per cent, and the increase in the number of matches played. The 2012 edition had 27 matches among 12 teams. This year, with the addition of Hong Kong, Netherlands, Nepal and United Arab Emirates, the number of participants has gone up to 16 and the matches to 35. The number of advertisers, though, have comedown from 34 in 2012 to around 25 in 2014.

MINTING MOOLAH

• The increase in revenues is a result of an increase in ad rates (nearly 25 per cent) and the increase in the number of matches played
• The broadcaster is charging about Rs 3.75 lakh for a 10-second slot

The broadcaster charged an average Rs 3 lakh for a 10-second spot in 2012 for the series. This time, advertisers have to pay Rs 3.75 lakh for the same time. The rates for the final stages of the matches will be raised depending on the teams that make it to the semi-finals and final.

Media planners reveal that if India, Australia and Pakistan make it to the final leg, another 10-15 per cent increase in spot rates can be expected.

The broadcast sponsors on board include Pernod Ricard, Hyundai Motors, Coca-Cola, Perfetti, State Bank of India and TVS Srichakra (tyres). This is four less than in 2012, when the broadcaster had a total of 10 — three presenting sponsors and seven associate ones. “The main reason why the response has been lukewarm is that the timing of the series is unfavourable. It’s the end of the financial year and brands might need to tighten purse strings due to budget constraints. Also, probably, had the venue been a country like England or Australia, the response might have been better,” says K Lakshminarayan, chief operating officer, Madison Media Ultra. While the financial details s of the sponsorship deal were not available, planners believe the aggregate value of the six sponsor partnerships would be upwards of Rs 30 crore.

Apart from these, the International Cricket Council (ICC) is on board with official commercial partners for. These include PepsiCo, LG, Hyundai, Castrol, Emirates, MoneyGram, Reebok and Reliance.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) will follow the T20 World Cup and has seena  similar increase in ad spot rates.The ad rates for the seventh season of the IPL are in the range of Rs 4.75-5 lakh. This is a 20 per cent increase from last year and made primarily to compensate for the reduction in the number of matches played, with expulsion of the Pune Warriors franchise.The broadcaster’s target revenue for this year’s IPL is Rs 900-950 crore.

Another media planner, who did not want to be named, says: “While both the tournaments follow the short format of the game, the buzz around the IPL is much more. Also, every team has Indian players in the IPL and, thus  the viewership is much more. The advertiser interest is alson proportionately more. Also, the number of matches in the IPL is significantly higher than the ICC T-20 Cup, which gives MSM (Multi Screen Media, the official broadcaster) the leg room to adjust the rates and offer deals and packages.”