After a long delay, the BCCI have released the tender for the BCCI media Rights. Amid fledgling interest in the BCCI Media Rights, the Indian Cricket Board is trying to drum up interest from Amazon and Alphabet (Google) to spike a bidding war. With BCCI’s deal with Disney Star expiring in March, the Indian Cricket Team is in need of a new stakeholder to broadcast their home games.
The BCCI has stated that the detailed terms and conditions will be available in the Invitation To Tender (ITT), which can be purchased upon submission of a non-refundable fee of INR 15 lakh.
Also Read: Zee-Sony merger incomplete, Disney-Star, Viacom18 fight for BCCI Media Rights
As per Bloomberg, BCCI has reached out to Amazon & Google to bid for their media rights auction. With very less interest, the Indian cricket board has postponed the release of the BCCI Media Rights tender by at least two weeks as they explore options. Disney-Star paid Rs 6138.10 Crore for 103 matches last time out. It made per match valuation of Rs 61 Cr. However, as the rights will be separate, BCCI expects upward of Rs 12,000 Crore.
However, given the drop in popularity of ODIs, broadcasters are cautious about shelling out huge sums. BCCI had a windfall with the board earning Rs 48,390 Cr from the sale of IPL Media Rights through an e-auction. IPL still remains the top cricket property, with India’s bilateral series struggling to generate as much money from ad revenue. BCCI’s appointed advisers Ernst & Young however believe the auction is likely to raise only a minimum of Rs 6195 Crore.
The per-match valuation will once again be around Rs 61 crore, a steep fall from BCCI’s expected Rs 100 Crore. This is despite India playing more T20Is in the coming years as per ICC’s FTP. The IPL on the other hand had seen a 3x surge in valuation when the rights for sold last year. JioCinema streamed the IPL for free, while Disney Star struggled to make profits due to weak advertisement revenues.
Highlights of BCCI Media Rights Tender:
- The new deal will be for 5 years as is the case for IPL.
- Both digital and TV rights will be separate as there has been an upward trend in digital.
- There is likely to be an e-auction instead of a closed bidding process.
- BCCI had a windfall of Rs 48,390 Cr from sale of IPL Media Rights. It had TV rights and Digital rights separate.
- The exact number of matches that will come under the new deal is still under discussion.
- But it is likely that the deal will include 100 bilateral matches.
- In the new cycle, there will be more number T20s and less number of ODIs as there has been a lack of interest from the audience in ODIs.
Star, the previous owner of the media rights, have hit losses globally and is on a cost-reduction spree. It reported losses worth Rs 1,000 crore from its previous ownership of the BCCI rights. While they will table a bid for the Indian Cricket Team rights, it is unlikely to be over the top as was the case during the IPL.
Mukesh Ambani’s Viacom18 however is likely to bid aggressively bid for the digital media rights. Sony and Zee are also players in the fray, despite their impending merger. Sony, who has the ECB and SLC rights, ran Viacom18 close in the IPL rights bid. FanCode is also among the interested parties for digital rights.
Earlier, the entire sale process was expected to be done by August 19. However, a reported two-week delay has further put a spanner in BCCI’s works. However, a new broadcaster will get on board for IND vs AUS ODI series before World Cup 2023. The BCCI are currently without a broadcaster since the agreement with Star lapsed in March. The Indian Cricket Board has since live streamed Duleep Trophy and Deodhar Trophy on bcci.tv
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