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BCCI decides to have biggest-ever ($ 6 bN-n) TV/digital rights sale in an e-auction: Example for all in whole region: IPL media rights go online

24 Mar 2022

For the third time in 15 years, the coveted media rights for the Indian Premier League (IPL) will go on sale, most likely next week. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is ready with the invitation-to-tender (ITT) for the 2023-27 cycle and is likely to bring it out next week in the form of an e-auction. Corruption and nepotism have tarnished the image of local political as well as sports administrations to an almost irreparable level in this region. The e-auction is considered a form which will minimise undue commissions and foul play whilst providing bidders with an equal and fair platform to stake their claims – a process that will give the perfect result in the whole tender process. ‘Transparency’ remains the keyword Against such a backdrop, the BCCI’s move to conduct the extremely lucrative IPL television rights deal for the next four years digitally on an e-platform can be rated as an exemplary move that will create a lot of faith and confidence in the tournament’s organisation amongst global cricket fans. As we know, the IPL is not just “Indian” but a truly global sports event which is participated by almost all the top players of the cricket world and is rated as one of the richest sports leagues of the globe, second to perhaps the richest European football leagues. “‘Transparency’ remains the keyword in the entire process (of IPL TV rights) and to ensure the same, the BCCI has gone ahead and decided to conduct an e-auction,” BCCI Secretary Jay Shah, who is overseeing the IPL TV rights selling process, had been quoted as saying in the Indian media yesterday (23). Confidence of the investors He has also said that he had little doubt that the game’s hottest property will once again justify its ability to attract top-dollar in the Indian market and globally. “Doing our best to acquire the justified value that a brand like IPL warrants is definitely on the top of my mind. At the same time, we will also maintain complete transparency and that is one of the reasons why the media rights will be awarded through an e-auction,” Shah had told The Times of India this week. “You can gauge the popularity of the league and the confidence of the investors from the interest it generated and the valuation that the two teams attracted,” Shah had added. Explore new digital platforms He had further added: “The level of interest in securing this property is huge. We had deliberations and analysed different ways to conduct the tender process. We were very clear that the process we shortlist should fetch the league the right value it deserves while the process must remain transparent throughout. The e-auction will provide bidders with an equal and fair platform to stake their claims.” The BCCI has further adopted unique features in tendering of rights this time, deciding to explore digital platforms by inviting bids for multiple packages. In fact, to avoid any unforeseen circumstances emerging out of issues related to network and connectivity, the BCCI may opt for the entire process to be conducted via “the intranet” instead of “the internet”. Consolidated value of Rs. 1,705 billion Industry insights have already pegged the rights to attract a consolidated value in excess of $ 6 billion (Indian Rs. 45,000 crore or Sri Lankan Rs. 1,705 billion). Shah, however, is not counting yet. The onus, he says, has to be on the process and if that goes as planned, the outcome will only benefit Indian cricket. “We are in the closing stages of our discussions to finalise the dates to float the tender and we will come out with the ITT over the next few days. As per the standard guidelines, we will complete the process within 45-60 days once the tender is released. “The IPL symbolises a melting pot; effervescent with fresh ideas. This is critical to constantly innovate customer engagement tools and also retain the ability to attract top (sporting and non-sporting) talent,” Shah, who last weekend visited Colombo for this year’s Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Annual General Meeting, had said. Highest stands of ethical and transparent behaviour Shah, aged 33, is a businessman himself and became the BCCI Secretary in 2019. He is also the President of the ACC. He is the son of Amit Shah, India’s Minister of Home Affairs. Shah had graduated from Nirma University in Ahmedabad, Gujarat as a Bachelor of Technology. “The league is much sought-after not only amongst cricket lovers but also our partners such as the sponsors, broadcasters, and franchise owners. It is therefore imperative that the BCCI holds itself to the highest stands of ethical and transparent behaviour by holding an auction that is ingenious at its core, allows for maximum participation from existing and newer partners, and does so with an objective to maximise our financial goals which is critical for the development of the sport at the grassroots level,” Shah opined. “Our auction programme checks all these requirements,” he had added in an extensive description as to why they have decided to go online this time. Over-the-top (OTT) to compete with TV “At BCCI, the growth of the game is of paramount importance and our entire focus will be on making cricket better, making the lives of cricketers better, and building better infrastructure for everyone to play the beautiful game. The revenue generated from the IPL goes back into the game to firm up our grassroots infrastructure and domestic cricket,” he said. With technology changing at a fast pace and the pandemic giving way for over-the-top (OTT) to compete with television on a far more aggressive scale, the Board expects the digital space – from a rights perspective – to attract multiple players. Entire cricket world watches OTT is a means of providing television and film content over the internet at the request and to suit the requirements of the individual consumer. The term itself stands for “over-the-top”, which implies that a content provider is going over the top of existing internet services. Soon after the BCCI is done tendering the IPL, the cricket board will get busy working on the bilateral rights tender for the 2024-28 India national team rights cycle. Shah firmly believes the prioritising of upcoming calendar events will augur well for the sport and also help the International Cricket Council (ICC) plan their calendar seamlessly. “Bilateral tender should be our focus immediately, post IPL,” Shah added. The observers believe India is the epicentre of world cricket today and the money it attracts is decisive in the smooth running and development of the sport globally in the future.      


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