IPL 2022 TV viewership slips further in second week of tournament

Fatigue, marquee teams not performing well among reasons for slide; bids for forthcoming media rights auction may take hit, ad rates steady for now, say experts

Viewership of the Indian Premier League (IPL), among the world's most valued sporting properties, appears to be slipping consistently this year, going by viewership data shared by the media industry. The Broadcast Audience Research Council of India (BARC) tracks television viewership in the country. Data has been sourced from its subscribers.

TV ratings (or TVRs) of the T20 tournament for the second week, that is, between April 2-8, 2022, points to an even sharper drop in viewership versus the first week of the tournament as well as the corresponding period last year. The IPL this year began on March 26.

The average TVR of eight matches in the second week this year is down to 1.98, 2.43, and 2.34 in the age groups of 15-21, 22-30, and 31-40 years at an All-India level. This is a drop of 17 per cent, 12 per cent, and 15 per cent over the first week of the tournament this year.

When compared to last year, the drop is sharp in the second week, data shows. TV ratings have fallen by 40 per cent in the 15-21-year age group and by 34 per cent each in the 22-30-year and 31-40-year age groups. In the first week, TV ratings had fallen by 38 per cent, 33 per cent, and 32 per cent respectively in the three age groups when compared to last year.

"What the data implies is that there is IPL fatigue," says Sajal Gupta, chief executive officer (CEO) of Gurugram-based Kiaos Marketing, a consultancy firm. "The last three editions of the IPL have happened at intervals of six months over a year-and-a-half period. While the pandemic gave a boost to IPL viewership since the movement of people was restricted, now that isn't the case at all. People are travelling, eating, and shopping out, which is affecting TV viewership," he says.

Some media agency heads argue that the second week of the T20 tournament, in general, does see a drop in viewership over the first week, since the initial euphoria has died down by then.

"Viewers settle in by the second week. So, I am not perturbed by the drop in viewership. The pace will pick up as the tournament heads into the semi-final and final stages," says Shrenik Gandhi, co-founder, and CEO of Mumbai-based White Rivers Media.

But media planners and buyers admit that the current edition of the IPL has been plagued by performance issues by marquee teams such as Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings (CSK), who are last and second-last each on the points table. Mumbai Indians have not won a single match this year, while CSK has won just one game so far in the tournament.

Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Kolkata Knight Riders are among the top teams in terms of brand valuation, according to Kroll (earlier Duff and Phelps), a brand valuation firm.

The current leaderboard shows that new entrants Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants as well as Royal Challengers Bangalore are tied at eight points each, though Gujarat Titans have a better net run rate over its rivals.

"So, I would say that the tournament this year is very interesting with new teams and players such as Hardik Pandya of Gujarat Titans playing well," Gandhi says.

Yet, some agency executives say a drop of over a third in terms of viewership between the first and second weeks of the tournament this year hardly bodes well for forthcoming editions of the T20 league and the media rights auction in particular happening in June.

"While advertising rates for this edition will remain steady since much of the inventory has been locked in by Disney-Star, the impact could be felt in forthcoming editions of the league. Advertisers may get circumspect when it comes to investing in IPL in the future if viewership continues to fall. The bids for the media rights auction in June could also be impacted," says Vikram Sakhuja, group CEO, Madison Media & OOH.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has set nearly Rs 33,000 crore as the combined reserve price for the media rights of the Indian Premier League (IPL) under four packages, ensuring that it will get at least double the amount from the last five-year rights cycle ending in 2022. Disney-Star, for the uninitiated, had paid nearly Rs 16,348 crore for the combined TV and digital rights of the IPL in 2017.

The broadcaster has since then driven both advertising and subscription on digital and TV using the IPL as a key programming tool. This year, for instance, Disney-Star, said media planners and buyers, had hiked TV ad rates to around 15 lakh per ten seconds from around Rs 13-14 lakh per ten seconds last year. Digital ad rates were increased to around Rs 220-250 CPM or cost per thousand impressions versus Rs 180 CPM last year.

Over 100 brands had confirmed their participation in terms of advertising on the IPL this year owing to the increase in matches to 74 from 60 last year. Advertising revenue for this edition for Disney-Star is expected to cross Rs 4,000 crore.