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Tag: Indian Premier League

  • 82% Indians say IPL not a drag: Ipsos Survey

    82% Indians say IPL not a drag: Ipsos Survey

    MUMBAI: —Ipsos IPL survey shows that 82% Indians polled view the IPL as an extravaganza for cricket buffs and are fine with the tournament stretching to 7 weeks, given our high interest in the game; 12% respondents however find the duration of the tournament too long leaving little time for other things; though 7% respondents desisted from voicing their opinion.

    “Weariness from watching too much IPL is unthinkable for a cricket crazy nation like ours. IPL does hijack complete attention of cricket enthusiasts,” said Amit Adarkar, Managing Director – India, Ipsos.

    Given the popularity of the IPL, we’d asked respondents to name star batsman of the IPL who would notch up the highest runs. 46% named Virat Kohli and other batsmen chosen were: MS Dhoni (21%); Chris Gayle (9%); Rohit Sharma (7%); AB De Villiers (6%); Suresh Raina (5%); Brendon McCullum (2%); David Miller (2%); Steven Smith (1%) and Glen Maxwell (1%).

    Interestingly, the Orange Cap Holders, batsmen with highest run tally in pecking order so far are: Virat Kohli (RCB), DA Warner (SH), AB de Villiers (RCB), RG Sharma (MI), AM Rahane (RPS), G Gambhir (KKR), S Dhawan (SH), M Vijay (KXIP), Q de Kock (DD) and SK Raina (GL).

    We’d also asked respondents to name bowlers who would take most wickets. Star bowlers chosen were: Ravichandran Ashvin (21%), Sunil Narine (19%), Zaheer Khan (14%), Umesh Yadav (12%), Mitchell Johnson (9%), Lasith Malinga (8%), Dale Steyn (6%), Jasprit Burmah (5%); Mitchell Star (4%) and Tim Southee (3%) .

    In IPL 9, Purple Cap Holders (bowlers bagging maximum wickets) are: YS Chahal (RCB), B Kumar (SH), MJ McClenaghan (MI), Mustafizur Rahman (SH), SR Watson (RCB), AD Russel (KKR), Sandeep Sharma (KXIP), JJ Burmah (MI), DJ Bravo (GL) and DS Kulkarni (GL).

    “A lot of dark horses have created new benchmarks in their career in this season of the IPL,” said Adarkar.

    Virat Kohli, skipper Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) has kept the momentum going and has notched up the highest run tally in the IPL Season 9 and had recently displayed a scintillating performance at the ICC T20 World Cup as well. Comparing Kohli with Tendulkar has been rife for some time; we asked respondents if Virat Kohli was a legend in making a la Sachin Tendulkar? 51% respondents agreed that Kohli is a legend in making and inching towards being next Tendulkar; 28% however felt that Kohli was a legend in making but far from being the next Tendulkar; 11% felt that Kohli still has to play some more good cricket to either be a legend league or be the next Tendulkar. 10% had no views.

    With all the hoopla around the IPL, our survey asked which team would lift the trophy. Overall we got, divided views: 26% voted for Mumbai Indian (MI); 23% for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR); 20% chose the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB); 14% voted for the Delhi DareDevils (DD); 6% for Sunrisers Hyderabad; (SH) 4% for Kings Eleven Punjab (KXIP); 4% for Rising Pune Supergiants (RPS) and 3% for Gujarat Lions (GL).

    Adarkar is all praise for Gujarat Lions: “Debutants have notched up highest points when we look at the matches-won-tally (this is likely to change as more matches are played). Underdogs have zipped past the rest.”

    Point wise pecking order, till now was: Gujarat Lions is leading and at the top, followed by RCB, SH, KKR, MI, DD, RPS and KXIP.

    Interestingly, our survey shows allegiance by most cities for their state team, barring a few exceptions: Delhiites feel DD will bag the coveted IPL Trophy (56%); Mumbaikars say MI (75%); Chennai chooses MI (44%) and DD (21%); Kolkata sure about KKR (80%); Ahmedabad torn between KKR (48%) and RCB (38%); Bangalore for RCB (58%); Hyderabad for SH (40%) and RCB (26%); Lucknow fan following is split between RCB (30%), KKR (29%) and MI (21%).

    “This season we have seen the two debutante teams of Gujarat Lions and Rising Pune Supergiants. It will be interesting to see whether defending champions Mumbai Indians lift the trophy or will it be the Gujarat Lions, Delhi Devils or Kolkata Knight Riders. Still a lot more action on the anvil; and frenzy among fans will only increase as the final matches draw close,” adds Adarkar

  • Hotstar and Akamai renew web streaming partnership

    Hotstar and Akamai renew web streaming partnership

    NEW DELHI: Video streaming platform Hotstar and content delivery network Akamai Technologies Inc. today announced the renewal of their partnership to support Hotstar in delivering live sports content and the expected surge in viewership with the help of Akamai’s Intelligent Platform.

    Hotstar which was launched in February last year claims 65 million downloads and a content portfolio that covers local and international drama, movies and sports. Live sports in particular has seen a huge surge in viewership on Hotstar, especially as audiences turn to mobile as the primary screen for cricket updates and streaming.

    The partnership between Hotstar and Akamai announced in Bangalore plans for an expected surge in viewership over the next 18 months especially in light of the 2016 ICC World Twenty20 tournament in India, which saw a peak of 1.55 million concurrent video streams, and an average concurrency close to 350,000. The peak traffic for this event almost doubled from 655 Gbps in 2015 to 1.3 Tbps this year, highlighting the growing demand for live streaming online, across devices.

    Star and Hotstar delivered more than 23 million hours of live sporting video over the course of the T20 World Cup with the help of Akamai’s Media Delivery Solutions. The two companies are currently working to deliver the 2016 season of the Indian Premier League, which has also seen a surge in viewership over the last 2 years.

    “The Internet has become an important source for accessing global sporting events, and Akamai has consistently helped deliver events of scale around the world. Hotstar is a valued partner for Akamai and one that is consistently setting new benchmarks in video streaming and live sports consumption in particular. We are extremely proud of this successful partnership,” said Akamai Technologies Vice President, Media, APJ Parimal Pandya.

    “Since the launch of Hotstar in February 2015, we have seen a 10x increase in online viewership for sporting events. Planning for concurrency in live sports is a big part of delivering an outstanding uninterrupted experience for our users and Akamai has been an instrumental partner in helping us scale numbers that are very rarely seen online globally,” said Hotstar CEO Ajit Mohan.

    As Hotstar continues to develop and bring to market world class events, including movie premieres and live sports such as the ongoing Indian Premier League and the upcoming 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, the two companies are working together to introduce new features and innovations on the video streaming front.

  • Hotstar and Akamai renew web streaming partnership

    Hotstar and Akamai renew web streaming partnership

    NEW DELHI: Video streaming platform Hotstar and content delivery network Akamai Technologies Inc. today announced the renewal of their partnership to support Hotstar in delivering live sports content and the expected surge in viewership with the help of Akamai’s Intelligent Platform.

    Hotstar which was launched in February last year claims 65 million downloads and a content portfolio that covers local and international drama, movies and sports. Live sports in particular has seen a huge surge in viewership on Hotstar, especially as audiences turn to mobile as the primary screen for cricket updates and streaming.

    The partnership between Hotstar and Akamai announced in Bangalore plans for an expected surge in viewership over the next 18 months especially in light of the 2016 ICC World Twenty20 tournament in India, which saw a peak of 1.55 million concurrent video streams, and an average concurrency close to 350,000. The peak traffic for this event almost doubled from 655 Gbps in 2015 to 1.3 Tbps this year, highlighting the growing demand for live streaming online, across devices.

    Star and Hotstar delivered more than 23 million hours of live sporting video over the course of the T20 World Cup with the help of Akamai’s Media Delivery Solutions. The two companies are currently working to deliver the 2016 season of the Indian Premier League, which has also seen a surge in viewership over the last 2 years.

    “The Internet has become an important source for accessing global sporting events, and Akamai has consistently helped deliver events of scale around the world. Hotstar is a valued partner for Akamai and one that is consistently setting new benchmarks in video streaming and live sports consumption in particular. We are extremely proud of this successful partnership,” said Akamai Technologies Vice President, Media, APJ Parimal Pandya.

    “Since the launch of Hotstar in February 2015, we have seen a 10x increase in online viewership for sporting events. Planning for concurrency in live sports is a big part of delivering an outstanding uninterrupted experience for our users and Akamai has been an instrumental partner in helping us scale numbers that are very rarely seen online globally,” said Hotstar CEO Ajit Mohan.

    As Hotstar continues to develop and bring to market world class events, including movie premieres and live sports such as the ongoing Indian Premier League and the upcoming 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, the two companies are working together to introduce new features and innovations on the video streaming front.

  • BARC week 19: IPL pushes Sony Max to pole position again across genres

    BARC week 19: IPL pushes Sony Max to pole position again across genres

    MUMBAI:  Week 19 Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) All India data saw the pendulum shift back as the IPL season 9 backed Sony Max returned to top slot, but not by much. Last week’s numero uno Sun TV was close at its heels with slightly lower numbers. Star Utsav moved down to the tenth position in week 19, while Zee Telugu,  the only other regional channel among the top 10, moved up a place to ninth from the previous week’s tenth slot. The list covers the top 10 channels across all genres.

    Sony Max reported 944851 Impression (000s) in week 19 to claim first place closely followed by Sun TV with 944626 Impression (000s) which were significantly higher than the previous week’s 907221 Impression (000s) which had catapulted it to number one in week 18.

    Colors with 703707 Impression (000s) in week 19 as compared to 696037 Impressions (000s) moved up one place to third spot, while pushing down last week’s number three –Star Plus down one place.

    Star Plus bagged the fourth position with lower ratings in week 19 of 664177 Impressions (000s) as compared to last week’s 701000 Impressions (000s) 

    Zee TV retained fifth space in week 19 with lower ratings of 639647 Impressions (000s) as compared to 651225 Impressions (000s) in the previous week. Sony Pal remained at number six with 503774 Impressions (000s) as compared to the previous weeks 535090 Impressions (000s).

    Zee Anmol   maintained its previous week’s seventh rank with 500101 Impressions (000s) in week 19 as compared to 506949 Impressions (000s) week 18. Life OK also retained eighth spot with 471354 Impressions (000s) in week 19 as compared to 473477 Impressions (000s) in the previous week.

    The only other regional channel in the list of top ten channels across genres, Zee Telugu, moved up to ninth spot with 46866 Impressions (000s) in week 19 as compared to 1 445884 Impressions (000s) in week 19.

    Star Utsav moved down to the last place with 453454 Impressions (000’s) in week 19 as compared to 466912 Impressions in the previous week.

     

  • BARC week 19: IPL pushes Sony Max to pole position again across genres

    BARC week 19: IPL pushes Sony Max to pole position again across genres

    MUMBAI:  Week 19 Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) All India data saw the pendulum shift back as the IPL season 9 backed Sony Max returned to top slot, but not by much. Last week’s numero uno Sun TV was close at its heels with slightly lower numbers. Star Utsav moved down to the tenth position in week 19, while Zee Telugu,  the only other regional channel among the top 10, moved up a place to ninth from the previous week’s tenth slot. The list covers the top 10 channels across all genres.

    Sony Max reported 944851 Impression (000s) in week 19 to claim first place closely followed by Sun TV with 944626 Impression (000s) which were significantly higher than the previous week’s 907221 Impression (000s) which had catapulted it to number one in week 18.

    Colors with 703707 Impression (000s) in week 19 as compared to 696037 Impressions (000s) moved up one place to third spot, while pushing down last week’s number three –Star Plus down one place.

    Star Plus bagged the fourth position with lower ratings in week 19 of 664177 Impressions (000s) as compared to last week’s 701000 Impressions (000s) 

    Zee TV retained fifth space in week 19 with lower ratings of 639647 Impressions (000s) as compared to 651225 Impressions (000s) in the previous week. Sony Pal remained at number six with 503774 Impressions (000s) as compared to the previous weeks 535090 Impressions (000s).

    Zee Anmol   maintained its previous week’s seventh rank with 500101 Impressions (000s) in week 19 as compared to 506949 Impressions (000s) week 18. Life OK also retained eighth spot with 471354 Impressions (000s) in week 19 as compared to 473477 Impressions (000s) in the previous week.

    The only other regional channel in the list of top ten channels across genres, Zee Telugu, moved up to ninth spot with 46866 Impressions (000s) in week 19 as compared to 1 445884 Impressions (000s) in week 19.

    Star Utsav moved down to the last place with 453454 Impressions (000’s) in week 19 as compared to 466912 Impressions in the previous week.

     

  • Cargill Foods India aims to expand market with sponsorship of Rising Pune Supergiants

    Cargill Foods India aims to expand market with sponsorship of Rising Pune Supergiants

    MUMBAI: Indian Premier League as an IP has proved itself beneficial for brands time and again. In its 9th season now, the tournament sold all its advertising inventory a month before it even began, which speaks of the trust and faith it enjoys from the brands, thanks to the eyeballs it generates each season.

    On the team sponsorship front, though Cricket Team Sponsorship (ESP Properties Sportz Power report 2016) saw a marginal 1.9 percent drop from Rs. 3,478 million (Rs 347.8 crore) in 2015, IPL 9 seems promising especially with the new teams Rising Pune Supergiants and Gujarat Lions making inroads for many brands who were looking for an opportunity to enter the market. Though late entrants in the tournament the new teams allow the brands to grow their visibility.

    “IPL is not just a cricket league anymore; it is celebrated as a festival in India. This partnership with Rising Pune Supergiants for IPL 2016 is a strategic one and an obvious choice for us as both the brands have a strong connect with Pune. Through this collaboration two supergiants of Pune are coming together which will further strengthen our bond with the people of Pune,” shared Cargill Foods India CMO Neelima Burra, explaining the FMCG brands decision to become associate sponsors for Rising Pune Supergiants for this current tournament.

    When asked how this association with a sports team helps a FMCG brand, Burra answered, “Research has shown that in Maharashtra the viewership of IPL is the second highest and has increasingly started catering to many female audiences. The proportion of female viewers watching cricket has increased to 30 percent (source: TAM) since the inception of IPL matches. This makes it an ideal platform for us to connect with our consumers and with the trade community and create some high decibel energy in the market for our brands across Sunflower categories..”

    As part of the deal, the brand would see its presence in several marketing initiatives surrounding the sport. ”The Gemini logo will be visible on the leading side of the players’ caps and helmets. We also have rights to use players’ photographs in our POSM and retail promotions as well as on our digital assets,” Burra added in detail. Apart from this, the brand also leveraged this association through various digital promotions and contests, as well as in-shop and outdoor advertising in key sites including the MCA stadium in Pune.

    “The Gemini Facebook page has a lot of content on the IPL season. We have an activation for Cargill employees wherein players’ cut-outs are placed at multiple locations in our offices. People can click pictures and share the same on their social network by tagging the Gemini page and stand a chance to win prizes. Apart from this, we have started an employee engagement program called the ‘Cargill Premier League’ which is based on the IPL format,” Burra explained the brand’s marketing strategy on the digital front.

    In addition the marketer conducted meet and greet sessions with players for key distributors of Gemini,” Burra added. In addition, Burra said the brand is open to explore further associations with other sporting avenues or leagues that will help them connect with their consumers.

  • Cargill Foods India aims to expand market with sponsorship of Rising Pune Supergiants

    Cargill Foods India aims to expand market with sponsorship of Rising Pune Supergiants

    MUMBAI: Indian Premier League as an IP has proved itself beneficial for brands time and again. In its 9th season now, the tournament sold all its advertising inventory a month before it even began, which speaks of the trust and faith it enjoys from the brands, thanks to the eyeballs it generates each season.

    On the team sponsorship front, though Cricket Team Sponsorship (ESP Properties Sportz Power report 2016) saw a marginal 1.9 percent drop from Rs. 3,478 million (Rs 347.8 crore) in 2015, IPL 9 seems promising especially with the new teams Rising Pune Supergiants and Gujarat Lions making inroads for many brands who were looking for an opportunity to enter the market. Though late entrants in the tournament the new teams allow the brands to grow their visibility.

    “IPL is not just a cricket league anymore; it is celebrated as a festival in India. This partnership with Rising Pune Supergiants for IPL 2016 is a strategic one and an obvious choice for us as both the brands have a strong connect with Pune. Through this collaboration two supergiants of Pune are coming together which will further strengthen our bond with the people of Pune,” shared Cargill Foods India CMO Neelima Burra, explaining the FMCG brands decision to become associate sponsors for Rising Pune Supergiants for this current tournament.

    When asked how this association with a sports team helps a FMCG brand, Burra answered, “Research has shown that in Maharashtra the viewership of IPL is the second highest and has increasingly started catering to many female audiences. The proportion of female viewers watching cricket has increased to 30 percent (source: TAM) since the inception of IPL matches. This makes it an ideal platform for us to connect with our consumers and with the trade community and create some high decibel energy in the market for our brands across Sunflower categories..”

    As part of the deal, the brand would see its presence in several marketing initiatives surrounding the sport. ”The Gemini logo will be visible on the leading side of the players’ caps and helmets. We also have rights to use players’ photographs in our POSM and retail promotions as well as on our digital assets,” Burra added in detail. Apart from this, the brand also leveraged this association through various digital promotions and contests, as well as in-shop and outdoor advertising in key sites including the MCA stadium in Pune.

    “The Gemini Facebook page has a lot of content on the IPL season. We have an activation for Cargill employees wherein players’ cut-outs are placed at multiple locations in our offices. People can click pictures and share the same on their social network by tagging the Gemini page and stand a chance to win prizes. Apart from this, we have started an employee engagement program called the ‘Cargill Premier League’ which is based on the IPL format,” Burra explained the brand’s marketing strategy on the digital front.

    In addition the marketer conducted meet and greet sessions with players for key distributors of Gemini,” Burra added. In addition, Burra said the brand is open to explore further associations with other sporting avenues or leagues that will help them connect with their consumers.

  • Brands ride the social media wave during IPL 9

    Brands ride the social media wave during IPL 9

    MUMBAI: Come a new Indian Premiere League season and every sponsor and brand associate is ready to go all guns blazing and make the best out of every penny they have invested in this magnum opus of a cricketing tournament.

    According to reports, somewhere between Rs 1000 crore to Rs 1,200 crore is being spent on advertising and sponsorship this IPL season. With over 80 sponsors riding on, there is no doubt that the campaign space surrounding IPL 9 is nothing short of war zone. To cut above the noise, brands are looking to digital media to allow them to be innovative with their brand communication. Having a branding presence on the jersey or standing out with on ground sponsorship is no longer enough to feel reassured at your marketing efforts, unless it is packaged effectively with online engagement with IPL fans, because 70 per cent fans bring their mobile devices to share in stadia experiences and 46 percent mobile internet users search for sporting events and news (Source: ESP Properties- SportzPower Report 2016).

    Therefore social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are playing a major role in leveraging the brand’s online presence this IPL season. At the same time, thanks to IPL, the over conversations and user engagements on these social media platforms have also increased manifold.

    “After a successful partnership at the previous IPL edition where more than 29 million (2.9 crore) people engaged on Facebook, for the first time this season IPL, fans can support their favourite teams by adding exclusive frames – something that fans have already done more that 7.5 million (75 lakh) times so far. People will also have an opportunity to express their support through exciting features like dedicated prompts featuring an all new custom icon to let their friends know they’re watching the game. With Facebook Live fans are able to get closer to the action than ever before and on match days fans can watch videos and see images directly from the stadium and relive key moments from the IPL Facebook page and Instagram accounts,” shared Facebook India sports — strategic partner development head Asha Thacker.

    Twitter is the other social media giant that is driving the brands’ digital presence this IPL. YouTube, on the other hand, redefines the experience of watching and enjoying IPL through live chat making it more social and further integrating it with Google+.

    To keep their fans engaged popular cricket stars such as Virat Kohli and Yuvraj Sigh are also actively present on social media, driving the fanfare. As per data collected from Instagram, Top Players on Instagram were Virat Kolhi with 3 million impressions (30 lakh), followed by AB de Villiers and Yuvraj Singh with 1 million (10 lakh) impression each. When it came to Facebook, the most popular player is Virat Kolhi, with Yuvraj Singh on the second spot and Rohit Sharma as third.

    Unlike last few seasons of IPL, it isn’t the title sponsor that is making the most impressions on social media during IPL season 9 till now, but Vodafone, which is stealing the online show with its aggressive digital marketing. According to Maxus’ MESH data, Vodafone continues to be at the number one spot with its new ‘Super Dad’ spot that promotes SuperNet. It was the most talked about ad in between 30th April and 6 May with a clear lead from the rest of the contenders when it comes to driving online presence. Its hashtags #hakkeBakke and #besuper hashtag got attention on Twitter, too.

    The brand has also launched the SuperFan contest which it is promoting through a dedicated microsite. Using Facebook to its advantage, Vodafone has launched several Facebook only content on its pages, where winners of the contest can share their ‘Superfan Life’ photos and videos.

    Title sponsor Vivo has its own innovative way to grab the attention of the netizens. Riding on the popular culture of betting and predictions amongst cricket fans, the Chinese technology giant has started an interactive website VIVO Power Play that allows users to predict winners of every match. The brand is heavily promoting its ‘gaming’ platform through Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms.

    Moreover the brand’s recently launched campaign Ek India Happywalla also garnered huge traction through social media making it the second most talked about campaign between April 30 and 6 May.

    Apart from VIVO, several other mobile manufacturers are also using the IPL fanfare to their advantage to gain visibility in the market. A good example is Chinese manufacturer Oppo that has done an excellent job in marketing its new product, with the #OppoCameraPhone becoming the third most talked about campaign on the social media.

    United Breweries’ flagship alco beverage brand Kingfisher has also ensured a strong presence this IPL season by signing deals with multiple teams.
    In the two and a half weeks since the beginning of the season, Kingfisher has already integrated the use of Boomerang & MSQRD apps. Users have created their own content through these apps as responses to calls-to-action from the brand, which were then amplified through brand social handles. The annual brand cricket TVC, which has taken on an iconic status thanks to the Oo La La La Le O jingle, is pushed out to a focused target group through precise targeting and planning, making sure the #UnitedByGoodTimes message reaches a relevant audience.

    “Our association with Facebook is deeper and wider than ever before. Newer younger consumers are looking for compelling narratives, smarter technology and disruptive messaging. Not only are they digitally enabled, they are also mobile first. Kingfisher and Facebook have come together to address precisely this consumer behaviour over the biggest and most loved sporting event in India, cricket. Kingfisher fans can look forward to ‘’Money can’t buy’’ experiences on Facebook,” shared United Breweries, SVP Marketing, Samar Singh Sheikhawat.

    Not just the eCommerce and digitally inclined brands like Kingfisher which focus on youth, but several FMCG brands like associate sponsor of Rising Pune Supergiants, Cargill Foods India, has joined the digital marketing bandwagon this season with their association with the sporting league.

    “We have initiated several promotions on digital platforms to engage with our consumers and with the trade community. The Gemini Facebook page has a lot of content on the IPL season. We have also done activation for Cargill employees, wherein players’ cut-outs are placed at multiple locations in our offices. People can click pictures and share the same on their social network by tagging the Gemini page and stand a chance to win prizes. Apart from this, we are also running a recipe contest on our Facebook and YouTube pages. The winning entry will get a chance to make the Pune team members taste their recipe,” said Cargill Foods India CMO Neelima Burra.

    Brand IPL has itself maintained a strong presence on social networks this season. Between April 7 to April 20, Facebook witnessed 8 million (80 lakh) Profile Frames being used as this is also the first time this season IPL Fans can support their favourite teams by adding exclusive frames. Moreover 14.2 million (1.42 crore) people generated 111 million (11.1 crore) interactions around the Indian Premier League.

  • Brands ride the social media wave during IPL 9

    Brands ride the social media wave during IPL 9

    MUMBAI: Come a new Indian Premiere League season and every sponsor and brand associate is ready to go all guns blazing and make the best out of every penny they have invested in this magnum opus of a cricketing tournament.

    According to reports, somewhere between Rs 1000 crore to Rs 1,200 crore is being spent on advertising and sponsorship this IPL season. With over 80 sponsors riding on, there is no doubt that the campaign space surrounding IPL 9 is nothing short of war zone. To cut above the noise, brands are looking to digital media to allow them to be innovative with their brand communication. Having a branding presence on the jersey or standing out with on ground sponsorship is no longer enough to feel reassured at your marketing efforts, unless it is packaged effectively with online engagement with IPL fans, because 70 per cent fans bring their mobile devices to share in stadia experiences and 46 percent mobile internet users search for sporting events and news (Source: ESP Properties- SportzPower Report 2016).

    Therefore social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are playing a major role in leveraging the brand’s online presence this IPL season. At the same time, thanks to IPL, the over conversations and user engagements on these social media platforms have also increased manifold.

    “After a successful partnership at the previous IPL edition where more than 29 million (2.9 crore) people engaged on Facebook, for the first time this season IPL, fans can support their favourite teams by adding exclusive frames – something that fans have already done more that 7.5 million (75 lakh) times so far. People will also have an opportunity to express their support through exciting features like dedicated prompts featuring an all new custom icon to let their friends know they’re watching the game. With Facebook Live fans are able to get closer to the action than ever before and on match days fans can watch videos and see images directly from the stadium and relive key moments from the IPL Facebook page and Instagram accounts,” shared Facebook India sports — strategic partner development head Asha Thacker.

    Twitter is the other social media giant that is driving the brands’ digital presence this IPL. YouTube, on the other hand, redefines the experience of watching and enjoying IPL through live chat making it more social and further integrating it with Google+.

    To keep their fans engaged popular cricket stars such as Virat Kohli and Yuvraj Sigh are also actively present on social media, driving the fanfare. As per data collected from Instagram, Top Players on Instagram were Virat Kolhi with 3 million impressions (30 lakh), followed by AB de Villiers and Yuvraj Singh with 1 million (10 lakh) impression each. When it came to Facebook, the most popular player is Virat Kolhi, with Yuvraj Singh on the second spot and Rohit Sharma as third.

    Unlike last few seasons of IPL, it isn’t the title sponsor that is making the most impressions on social media during IPL season 9 till now, but Vodafone, which is stealing the online show with its aggressive digital marketing. According to Maxus’ MESH data, Vodafone continues to be at the number one spot with its new ‘Super Dad’ spot that promotes SuperNet. It was the most talked about ad in between 30th April and 6 May with a clear lead from the rest of the contenders when it comes to driving online presence. Its hashtags #hakkeBakke and #besuper hashtag got attention on Twitter, too.

    The brand has also launched the SuperFan contest which it is promoting through a dedicated microsite. Using Facebook to its advantage, Vodafone has launched several Facebook only content on its pages, where winners of the contest can share their ‘Superfan Life’ photos and videos.

    Title sponsor Vivo has its own innovative way to grab the attention of the netizens. Riding on the popular culture of betting and predictions amongst cricket fans, the Chinese technology giant has started an interactive website VIVO Power Play that allows users to predict winners of every match. The brand is heavily promoting its ‘gaming’ platform through Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms.

    Moreover the brand’s recently launched campaign Ek India Happywalla also garnered huge traction through social media making it the second most talked about campaign between April 30 and 6 May.

    Apart from VIVO, several other mobile manufacturers are also using the IPL fanfare to their advantage to gain visibility in the market. A good example is Chinese manufacturer Oppo that has done an excellent job in marketing its new product, with the #OppoCameraPhone becoming the third most talked about campaign on the social media.

    United Breweries’ flagship alco beverage brand Kingfisher has also ensured a strong presence this IPL season by signing deals with multiple teams.
    In the two and a half weeks since the beginning of the season, Kingfisher has already integrated the use of Boomerang & MSQRD apps. Users have created their own content through these apps as responses to calls-to-action from the brand, which were then amplified through brand social handles. The annual brand cricket TVC, which has taken on an iconic status thanks to the Oo La La La Le O jingle, is pushed out to a focused target group through precise targeting and planning, making sure the #UnitedByGoodTimes message reaches a relevant audience.

    “Our association with Facebook is deeper and wider than ever before. Newer younger consumers are looking for compelling narratives, smarter technology and disruptive messaging. Not only are they digitally enabled, they are also mobile first. Kingfisher and Facebook have come together to address precisely this consumer behaviour over the biggest and most loved sporting event in India, cricket. Kingfisher fans can look forward to ‘’Money can’t buy’’ experiences on Facebook,” shared United Breweries, SVP Marketing, Samar Singh Sheikhawat.

    Not just the eCommerce and digitally inclined brands like Kingfisher which focus on youth, but several FMCG brands like associate sponsor of Rising Pune Supergiants, Cargill Foods India, has joined the digital marketing bandwagon this season with their association with the sporting league.

    “We have initiated several promotions on digital platforms to engage with our consumers and with the trade community. The Gemini Facebook page has a lot of content on the IPL season. We have also done activation for Cargill employees, wherein players’ cut-outs are placed at multiple locations in our offices. People can click pictures and share the same on their social network by tagging the Gemini page and stand a chance to win prizes. Apart from this, we are also running a recipe contest on our Facebook and YouTube pages. The winning entry will get a chance to make the Pune team members taste their recipe,” said Cargill Foods India CMO Neelima Burra.

    Brand IPL has itself maintained a strong presence on social networks this season. Between April 7 to April 20, Facebook witnessed 8 million (80 lakh) Profile Frames being used as this is also the first time this season IPL Fans can support their favourite teams by adding exclusive frames. Moreover 14.2 million (1.42 crore) people generated 111 million (11.1 crore) interactions around the Indian Premier League.

  • Sony’s Ek India HappyWala for IPL scores big on social media, wins hearts

    Sony’s Ek India HappyWala for IPL scores big on social media, wins hearts

    MUMBAI: If sports channels are raising the expectations of viewers, the general entertainment channels cannot be left behind.

    Leaving no stone unturned, Sony Pictures Network began a month earlier with its campaign EK India…Happywala (One Happy India), so that the excitement builds even before the ninth edition of Indian Premier League.

    The campaign Ek India….Happywala (One Happy India) was launched on 1 March with the IPL anthem.

    To the launch the Vivo IPL 2016 anthem video, Sony did a Vox Pop activity featuring kids who were asked to answer a few questions about India. The same set of questions was thrown to adults on social media.

    The anthem was launched on social media that trended on twitter across India for five hours. The channel recorded 4,526 tweets, more than 42 million timeline deliveries, and had a reach of more than 5 million and recorded 3 million views anthem video. The anthem video received more than 100,000 likes and 26,131 people had shared it on Facebook.

    In order to take the campaign forward towards creating a happier nation, Sony started a user-powered activity where they motivated users to spread happiness with #15days Happywala. The core task is to make a stranger smile every day, thus converting users into happiness ambassadors. The activity kicked-off with a lot of user participation resulting in getting the activity to trend across India for more than 4 hours. The channel achieved 3,672 tweets, more than 28 million timeline deliveries and more 4 million plus reach – and 805 entries for the same.

    On 17 March, Sony launched the taxi promo, through which they emphasised on how the assurance of safety and well being can spread happiness among our citizens. The activity focused on driving conversations about spreading positivity.

    With this activity, the campaign thought #Ek India Happywala once again got a lot of buzz resulting it to trend for over 5 hours across India. More than 10 million people watched that video on social media platforms.

    The next in list was the Newsroom promo, with the launch of the news room video urging users to focus more on the country’s positives than the negatives, Sony Pictures Networks decided to reward users who would help support this cause. This activity turned out to be a huge hit amongst the audience as the broadcaster garnered more than 4000+ entries within a week. The Newsroom promo achieved more than 500,000 views on twitter.

    The next initiative of the campaign was to spread happiness in the lives of underprivileged kids. Users have to tell the story of a child who aspires to be a cricketer but doesn’t have the means. Sony offered to help 11 children (scouted by the users) with professional cricket kits and so far, they have received 145 entries since the launch of the activity. With 1, 255 tweets, 13 million timeline deliveries and 2 million of reach, the initiative #HappyXI was trended for four hours across India.

    To highlight the current mood of the country, the channel started Happiness meter activity. Happiness Meter is a listening activity that tracks the conversation happening on Twitter to gauge what is the current mood of the people in the country.

    The next Old Age Home promo recorded 29 million views on social and 1504 likes on Facebook. On 1 April Best Cricket game was a prank where the audiences tricked into playing the best ever online cricket game & having the best cricket experience they can ever have. Later, they realized that it’s the cricket insect that played them.

    The idea is to highlight that the best ever cricket experience can only be lived with vivo IPL. 2,045 tweets, 16 million timelines deliveries and 3 million reach, the prank activity was trending for five hours across India.