IPL 2024: Disney Star records highest-ever watch time during season opener

The CSK vs RCB match in Chennai also witnessed the highest-ever peak TV concurrency for an IPL opening day, with 6.1 crore viewers watching the broadcast simultaneously on Disney Star

It was a record-breaking Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 opening for the official broadcasters Disney Star as they recorded their highest-ever watch time for a single game.

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A total of 1276 crore minutes of watch time was registered for the opening day of the season, which included the star-studded opening ceremony and a titanic clash between Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

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"16.8 crore unique viewers watched the broadcast of TATA IPL 2024 on Day 1," the official broadcasters said in a press release. The numbers were released after the weekly Television Rating Points (TRP) were revealed by the Broadcast Audience Research Council of India (BARC) on Wednesday, March 27.

Highest-ever peak TV concurrency 

A total of 6.1 crore viewers watched the broadcast of the opening day of the IPL 2024 simultaneously. According to Disney Star, the unfiltered captain's version of the importance of the league, in which eight out of the 10 captains revealed their raw emotions, led to this highest-ever peak TV concurrency for an IPL Opening Day.

"The record-breaking TV viewership on the Opening Day comes on the back of an incredible lead-up to the 17th season, which attracted more than 24.5 crore unique viewers till a week before the start of the tournament," the press release added. 

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Involvement of AI

What truly surprised the viewers was the introduction of Artificial Intelligence. The technology allowed international experts to engage with fans in their local languages. Short videos or reels of Australia's Steve Smith and England's Stuart Broad voices being translated into seamless Hindi crowded social media.

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In comparison, on digital, JioCinema had clocked 11.3 crore viewers on the first day of the IPL. The streamer claimed that it registered a 51 per cent jump over day one of IPL 2023. The total watch time on JioCinema on day 1 was 660 crore minutes, it said in a statement.