The broadcaster monopoly in the Indian Premier League will come to an end as the IPL digital and TV rights for the Indian subcontinent went to two different broadcasters. As the IPL media rights auction spilled over to the third day in Mumbai, it has emerged that Star India has retained the television rights for the Indian subcontinent (Package A) while Viacom18 bagged the digital rights (Package B), which have been sold for an unprecedented figure in the Indian sports broadcasting history.
Disney Star won Package A for £2.35 billion while Viacom18 grabbed the digital rights with a whopping bid of £2.05 billion. The BCCI will make £4.40 billion for 410 matches between 2023 and 2027, from only the sale of the Indian subcontinent TV and digital rights. Notably, Star India had paid £1.63 billion for a composite bid for TV and digital rights in 2017 for the 2018-22 cycle.
The cost per match has risen to £10.75 million, nearly twice the amount paid in the previous cycle. The bidding started with increments of Rs 50,00,000 during the initial period and once Package A winner challenged the highest bidder of Package 'B', the incremental bid value was worth £100,000. The BCCI did not allow composite bids for TV and digital, unlike in 2017. Star India had made a composite winning bid despite Facebook emerging as the highest bidder with £390 million for digital rights for 2018-22 cycle.
Legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar conceded that he had not expected the media rights value to touch unprecedented levels as it has now. However, it is the Indian sub-continent's digital rights that stole the thunder, with £5 million per game being offered by Viacom18 (with Uday Shankar and James Murdoch's Lupa Systems) after Star as the winner of Package A challenged them.
The break-up of 410 matches across five years are as follows: 74 matches each for 2023 and 2024. It increases to 84 games in 2025 and 2026, and 94 matches in 2027. As per the norms of e-auction, the owners are given a secret code through which they bid. No BCCI office-bearers and employees have an inkling of the bidding companies' code.
