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Tag: IPL

  • Vivo dials into IPL’s title sponsorship as Pepsi fizzles out; BCCI meeting underway

    Vivo dials into IPL’s title sponsorship as Pepsi fizzles out; BCCI meeting underway

    NEW DELHI: The controversy ridden Indian Premier League (IPL) has got its third official sponsor in less than nine seasons of the tournament, with Chinese smartphone maker Vivo replacing PepsiCo as the next sponsor for two years.

     
    PepsiCo, which had replaced DLF as the title sponsor of the IPL, has gone global quoting Pepsi chairman Indra Nooyi saying that the company will only associate with ethical and clean sporting properties.

     
    Confirming the new sponsorship deal with Vivo to Indiantelevision.com, a source close to the development said that the terms and conditions will remain the same as with PepsiCo.

    At the time of filing this report, IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla was not available for comment as it is understood he is attending a meeting of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which is currently underway in Mumbai. 

     
    The source said Vivo is trying to establish its presence in the Indian market and will leverage the IPL platform for the same.

     

    PepsiCo had become title sponsor of the IPL in 2013 after they bid Rs 396.8 crore for five seasons until 2017. 

     

    Earlier this month, the cola giant had informed IPL COO Sundar Raman about the decision to withdraw.

     

    Shukla had earlier said the Pepsi pullout will have no bearing on the tournament as they were already in talks with other sponsors. Shukla had clarified that PepsiCo had been a good partner, had made certain points and the issue would be resolved amicably. 

    Sources indicated that PepsiCo will continue to be associated with the IPL as beverage partner with independent IPL teams.

     

    Prior to Pepsi, DLF had paid Rs 200 crore to become title sponsors of the tournament since its inception in 2008 till 2012.

     
    It is learnt that PepsiCo was disturbed at allegations of corruption as well as arrests of players and officials on charges of betting during its sponsorship term.

     
    These included Gurunath Meiyappan, then team official of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) team, and Raj Kundra, then co-owner of Rajasthan Royals (RR), who had been given a clean chit by a commission appointed by then BCCI chief N Srinivasan. 

     
    After losing the case in the Bombay High Court, BCCI went to the Supreme Court, which in July appointed the Justice RM Lodha panel after which with CSK and RR teams were banned from the tournament for two years with Meiyappan and Kundra being banned for life.

  • ErosNow readies six original shows with big stars; to adopt tiered premium pricing model

    ErosNow readies six original shows with big stars; to adopt tiered premium pricing model

    MUMBAI: As digital players strengthen their content, pricing and marketing strategy in the country with the impending opportunity that will be provided by 4G players, Eros International’s over-the-top (OTT) platform ErosNow has readied as many as six original made-for-digital shows.

     

    The shows will be young, fresh and edgy, which will be a differentiator from traditional television programming. Additionally, being a major player in the Indian film industry, Eros has also roped in big actors namely Bipasha Basu, Chitrangda Singh, Radhika Apte, Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar and Ayushmann Khurrana amongst others to star in the digital shows.

     

     

    PRICING MODEL

     

    In a highly-competitive market place, ErosNow’s strategy will be to garner a large user base and migrate users to pay platform by offering premium services. The OTT platform plans to monetise its 26.5 million users under a tiered premium pricing model: (1) Advertising revenue, (2) Transaction revenue: ‘Pay As You Go’ model, (3) International Premium single tier subscription service priced at $7.99 per month and $79.99 per year, and (4) Indian quasi-premium two-tiered subscription service priced at Rs 50 and Rs 100 per month.

     

    While internet penetration is still in its early stages in India, the country’s digital ad market is poised to reach $2.8 billion by 2020 and ErosNow is eyeing a chunk of this revenue. In India, ErosNow will offer two pricing models. While in the Rs 50 per month subscription package, users can have access to all new content ad free content with subtitles, the Rs 100 per month model content will additionally also offer portability and HDTV content.

     

    The ‘Pay As You Go’ pricing model will have weekly, monthly and series passes.

     

     

    ORIGINAL SHOWS

     

    Upping the ante on original content, the six new shows, which will soon be loaded on ErosNow are of the thriller and drama genres and range from eight – twelve episodes. Boasting of big names from the Indian film industry, the shows are likely to pull in audiences on the platform.

     

    The first show is a thriller titled The Clients starring Bipasha Basu and will have 12 episodes. The show is based in the posh ‘murky’ corridors of power in Delhi, amidst rich industrialists and powerful politicians, where a woman uses the power of her body, mind and soul to clean their mess…or does she have another agenda?

     

    The second thriller is titled Khel and stars Chitrangda Singh. The 10 episodes show gives an insider’s look at the world of Indian Premier League (IPL), and the various stake holders in it. It will offer a behind-the-scenes story of the IPL match-fixing, politics, controversies. Drugs, sex, big money & criminal syndicates all play a big part. The real games are played not on, but off the field…beyond the boundaries.

     

    The third drama titled Legacy has the tagline – ‘When Music Demands Blood’ and will star names like Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar and Ayushmann Khurrana amongst others. The 10 episodes show focus on the music industry wherein a young man arrives from nowhere and takes the music industry by storm. But he has a secret hidden agenda – to destroy the country’s biggest music label by creating his own.

     

    The Radhika Apte starrer Lost, will be an eight episodes thriller, which will revolve around an eight year old girl who goes missing. Her NRI parents are forced to seek the help of a suspended female cop in their search for her. An ex-human trafficker is blackmailed to join the search or else risk his sinful past catching up with him.

     

    The fifth show is a drama called Showtime, which will take a look at the 1960s golden era of Bollywood and all that goes in front as well as behind the camera. The eight episodes drama will showcase legendary men and women of the era, their love stories, heartbreaks and more.

     

    The sixth show in the young drama genre is Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Fairytale. Bhansali will revisit the most popular fairytales set in modern day India in the show spanning 12 episodes. Planned in the seasons format, each season of the show will recreate one fairytale with dazzling visuals in the form of a musical with a definite twist in the tale.

     

    As part of its content strategy for original programming, ErosNow will develop shows in the various genres like drama, fiction, reality and comedies. Additionally, the OTT platform is also eyeing remakes from hit international series.

     

    Targeting key markets like India, Australia, South East Asia, Middle East, Europe and America where there is demand for Indian content and stars from the Indian diaspora, ErosNow will take a 360 degree marketing approach utilising the medium of television, cinema, radio, print, outdoor, social media and advertising networks to promote its offerings. 

     

     

    ADVERTISING MODEL

     

    ErosNow will be moving away from the CPM rates and YouTube type inventory monetisation. The service will have selective premium advertisers and synergise partnerships with celebrities endorsing brands. Apart from having pre-rolls and other real estate on the player, ErosNow will have sponsorships rather than spots and offer higher ad premium based on levels of interactivity and user engagement. It will also look at in-film placements in movies and original series.

     

     

    PARTNERSHIPS

     

    Being platform agnostic, ErosNow will collaborate with telecom companies, cable and DTH platforms, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) like TV, connected and personal devices as well as with others like broadband companies and the Indian Railways to be present across maximum platforms.

     

    ErosNow has inked marketing and distribution “carriage” with all major cable operators in India. It has also integrated with DTH players in India to capture digitisation trend. Moreover, the company has also inked cable partnerships in all major markets including US, Canada, Middle East & SE Asia.

     

    For OEMs, ErosNow has partnered with some television manufacturers so all major smart TVs will have the app and will offer cross-promotions worldwide. ErosNow content and apps will be featured on all connected devices worldwide.

     

    ErosNow has also inked carriage and cross-promotion deals on mobile handsets pre-loaded with the ErosNow app. In one such deal, Karbonn will soon be launching one million smart phones with the ErosNow app embedded in it.

     

    In a deal with the Indian Railways, the OTT platform is now also the exclusive content partner for entertainment rollout in thousands of railway stations in India with RailTel. What’s more, with Google poised to boost railway Wi-Fi rollout, this will receive a huge impetus.

     

    Additionally, ErosNow app is also offered in bundle deals with major broadband players in India.

     

    Internationally, distribution partnerships have been inked with cable companies as well as new platforms in the the US. Partnerships are also in place with major telecom providers in over 50 countries.

     

    OUTLOOK

     

    Apart from original programming, the content mix on ErosNow will also comprise movies, television and music. As was reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com, ErosNow has acquired the UK based company PingTune to enhance its music offering.

     

    Eros is also looking at carving a new window for movie premieres on ErosNow between the theatrical release and television airing. It may be recalled that Star India recently premiered Bajrangi Bhaijaan on television first and then put the movie exclusively on its OTT platform Hotstar.

     

    ErosNow is one of the pivotal pillars of Eros International’s growth and profitability plans. The company’s aim is to maximise the full potential of its direct to consumer business and aims to garner over 100 million registered users. ErosNow’s strategy is to upsell premium subscriptions to the large base. In the future, the services also plans to expand to gaming, e-commerce and other synergistic domains to monetise the large base beyond entertainment.

    With numerous OTT players like Star India’s Hotstar, Multi Screen Media’s Sony Liv, Zee Entertainment’s DittoTV, HooQ, BoxTV, Big Flix, Balaji Telefilms’ yet to launch OTT platform etc, looking to ride the OTT bus, ErosNow is gearing up to clinch the first-movers’ advantage with its aggressive plans in the space.

  • Pepsi’s withdrawal ‘no big issue’: IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla

    Pepsi’s withdrawal ‘no big issue’: IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla

    MUMBAI: PepsiCo’s notice to BCCI to withdraw its sponsorship from the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) next leg has come as yet another setback to India’s most popular cricketing event.

     

    However, a source close to the development informs Indiantelevision.com, “Pepsi’s exit will have no negative impact on the brand value of the tournament and the board is confident of having a new sponsor way before the start of the next season.”

     

    IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla was quoted by PTI as saying, “We are in talks with other sponsors as well, so the title deal with Pepsi is not that big an issue. They have certain points and we are going to settle them amicably in the next meeting, They have been very good partners all this while and we do not want to disturb our relationship with them. Whatever is going to happen is going to happen in a very smooth manner.”

     

    Shukla further added, “Pepsi wants to end the deal due to its drenching foreign interests. They have shown a willingness to move out of the deal from this season because of their own interests and not because of disrepute and stuff. So they may not continue as the main sponsor.”

     

    The beverage giant wants to walk out of the five-year title contract, which due to expire in 2017, because of the cash-rich league’s incurring controversies.

     

    PepsiCo had paid Rs 396 crore ($71.77 million) from the 2013 – 2017 period. The BCCI will take up the matter during its working committee meeting in Mumbai on 18 October.

  • “We are aiming to get digital users to switch to our OTT platform”: RC Venkateish

    “We are aiming to get digital users to switch to our OTT platform”: RC Venkateish

    At a time when digitization of cable television is throwing up a major challenge to direct-to-home (DTH) operators, Dish TV has reported a 55.2 per cent higher profit after at Rs 54.21 crore in the quarter ended 30 June. It is the first DTH company to report a profit after tax, also adding 390,000 subscribers, which was only slightly lower than the figure of 404,000 in the fourth quarter of 2014-15. Dish TV now has 13.3 million subscribers. The ARPU is more or less the same, but subscriber acquisition costs are running at Rs 1750 per subscriber.

                         

    In an interview with Indiantelevision.com, Dish TV CEO RC Venkateish spoke of the work that had gone into achieving this success.

     

    Excerpts:

     

    To what do you attribute your success in reaching out to more subscribers and coming up with an impressive revenue figure?

     

    I feel that the credit goes to better marketing strategies and the youth-based Zing, which has been lapped up by the people because of the local content. In fact, Zing has also succeeded because there is greater emphasis on the language of the region where it is beamed with local content and programming.

     

    Can you throw some light on the plans to launch Zing in the Kerala market?

     

    Zing has been present in the Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. And we are now expanding and moving to Kerala with Malayalam content.

     

    Dish TV’s subscription figures are somewhat lower than those in the last quarter of 2014-15. Comment.

     

    Well, the effort is to consolidate and grow. Dish expects to add 1.5 to 1.7 million subscribers this year. Do not overlook the fact that last year we had got 332,000 subscribers in the same period (first quarter of 2014-15). The gradual shift to digitization will also help, and therefore the concentration at present is on Phase III and Phase IV.

     

    But the ARPU shows an increase of only one rupee over the previous quarter, ending up at Rs 173 a month.

     

    The ARPU is always typically low in the first quarter but picks up later.

     

    The Government is emphasizing on indigenous set top boxes. Are you installing local STBs for your subscribers?

     

    Dish is currently getting these mostly from Korea though every effort is being made to get good quality indigenous STBs.

     

    Dish TV also has a tie-up with Kolkata Knight Riders. How much of the budget goes into marketing and advertising?

     

    The players wear Dish TV armbands, and the tie-up gives us the opportunity to have in-stadia advertising through boards etc.

     

    I would not say budget, but around 3.5 per cent of the topline sales go into advertising and marketing. The advertising is not done merely through Zee’s own channels but also through other channels, digital platforms, hoardings, newspapers and FM channels.  

     

    Can you tell us something about your future plans?

     

    We are working on our over-the-top (OTT) platform – DishOnline and aiming to get digital subscribers on to this platform.

     

    There has been some tirade against local channels run by DTH operators. Comment.

     

    We do not have a local channel. But the channel that opens as one switches on Dish is aimed only at advertising various schemes of the platform and modes of payment.

     

  • BCCI forms working group to study Lodha Committee verdict on IPL; Rajeev Shukla to head

    BCCI forms working group to study Lodha Committee verdict on IPL; Rajeev Shukla to head

    MUMBAI: The Indian Premiere League (IPL) Governing Council has recognized the urgent need to understand the impact of the Lodha Committee verdict on the IPL and the wider ramifications for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in detail. This, to uphold the paramountcy of the game in the country.

     

    The Governing Council has authorised chairman Rajeev Shukla, to constitute a working group, which will study this verdict in consultation with all the key advisors and explore all the possible measures to be adopted, with an objective to protect the interests of all the stakeholders involved.

      

    This group will work within a time bound period of six weeks and report their recommendations to the IPL Governing Council, which will deliberate and share their views with the working committee of the BCCI, for further action.

  • Six-team IPL may disrupt BCCI’s economics: experts

    Six-team IPL may disrupt BCCI’s economics: experts

    MUMBAI: When Justice Lodha committee spelt a part of its landmark verdict on 2013 Indian Premier League (IPL) betting case on the afternoon of 14 July, 2015, many ripples were created.

     

    IPL is the largest revenue generating property of the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI). As per the board’s 2013-14 annual report, gross receipts from IPL 2013 were Rs 1194 crore as against Rs 892 crore in 2012. The main reason behind the increase in gross receipt, as per then honorary treasurer, was mainly incline in receipts from media rights which has gone up from Rs 556 crore to Rs 844 crore. The franchisee consideration had also witnessed a marginal incline from Rs 460 crore to Rs 502 crore. Now with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) being suspended for a period of two years by the Justice Lodha Committee, the reduction of two teams will result in less number of matches and subsequently generate lesser revenue for the Board as the broadcaster will pay less than the proposed deal.

     

    Apart from BCCI, the official broadcaster of IPL – Multi Screen Media’s (MSM) Sony Max will also face a major blow if the number of matches go down. MSM paid a mammoth $1 billion (Rs 6600 crore) to acquire broadcasting rights for a period of ten years. Lesser number of matches will leave Sony with less opportunities for monetization. The 2015-16 season of IPL was the most successful year for Sony as the broadcasters sealed advertising deals of more than Rs 1000 crore before the first ball was bowled.

     

    A source closely associated with the broadcasting network tells Indiantelevision.com on condition of anonymity, “It’s too early to predict anything and also it’s highly unlikely that BCCI will enter IPL with six franchises. This is a judicial step taken and the entire fraternity will abide by it. The broadcaster will wait and watch what BCCI does and the best part is there is time in hand to ensure smooth proceedings.”

     

    As per TAM Sports analysis, CSK matches in IPL 8 (2015) garnered 4.2 per cent TVR whereas RR matches secured 3.7 per cent TVR. Moreover, as per the analysis, CSK featured six times in the list of top viewed matches of the season, which only goes on to prove the growing popularity of the MS Dhoni led team.

     

    If IPL is played with six teams, the million dollar tourney will have 34 matches in total instead of 60. A cricket expert opines, “Firstly, we have to keep in mind that the two teams are suspended for two years and not for life. Now, in the meantime if BCCI adds two more teams to make it eight again, after two years when the two teams are back, IPL will be a 10 team tourney and that’s when it goes for pitch. So the hypothesis that the IPL will face a blow, is a null hypothesis. And if we think that because of the controversies, Indians will stop watching IPL then we are wrong because if it had to happen it would have happened in 2014 and 2015 because the case we are talking about is of 2013. So I see the IPL only growing bigger.”

     

    On the brand value of IPL, Baseline managing director Tuhin Mishra says, “There might be a bit of a blip, but it’s temporary. The game of cricket and IPL are much bigger than a few individuals. It’s a game that is embraced by Indians and the world over. Controversies and incidents have been a part of sports from time immemorial and this too shall pass.”

     

    Revenue from ticket sales will easily see a 25 per cent decline if there are only six teams feels a senior member of an e-ticketing giant. Every match of IPL witnesses more than Rs 7 crore gross in ticket sales and hence if the number of matches go down, ticketing revenue will also decline, which will in turn result in a substantial loss of e-ticketing venture associated with the league.

     

    Addressing a press conference after the Justice Lodha Committee verdict was delivered, Rajasthan Royals owner Raj Kundra said, “I am shocked and hurt. There are many inaccuracies… have requested for a copy of judgment.”

     

    As per a PTI report, India Cements is set to move to Supreme Court and appeal against the order of the Lodha Committee. However, it must be kept in mind that it was the apex court, which in the first place, appointed the Lodha Committee to investigate the matter and said that its verdict on the case would be “final and binding.” 

     

    Following the pronouncement of the order of the Lodha Committee, BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya said, “BCCI is committed to honour and respect judicial decisions and it would give its observations after the entire report is read and a collective decision is taken. BCCI is committed to ensuring transparency, accountability and cleansing the sport in order to restore the faith and confidence of millions of cricket loving people in the glorious game of cricket in general and IPL in particular.”

     

    Veteran cricket expert Ayaz Memon tweeted, “Most significant import of Lodha verdict? Busted time-held defence of BCCI that it’s a private society, which can function with its own rules.” Another tweet from him read, “Momentous day not just in Indian but international cricket. Tremor will be felt everywhere….”

     

    The focus now will gradually shift towards the broadcasting rights bid for the IPL in 2017 as there will be a number of broadcasters aggressively vying to get their hands on the Twenty20 cash cow. A senior media planner is of the opinion that things will get interesting with time. “An IPL comprising six teams will enforce 30 per cent loss if compared to the number registered this year. But a 10 team IPL will raise the brand value enormously as the broadcaster will have additional time to monetise.”

     

    Experts also believe that the ball now is in BCCI honorary secretary Anurag Thakur’s court and he will play a pivotal role in the fate of the league. Speaking on the verdict and the way forward Thakur said, “We respect the verdict and would undertake a collective decision in a transparent manner, in the right direction and in the larger interest of the game after the verdict is received and analysed.”

     

    Click to View CSK and RR matches viewership pattern (TAM Sports)

    Click to View Overall ratings click (TAM Sports)

  • IPL: Justice Lodha committee bans CSK, Rajasthan Royals for two years

    IPL: Justice Lodha committee bans CSK, Rajasthan Royals for two years

    MUMBAI: In a landmark judgement, which has come as a major blow to the Indian Premier League (IPL), the Supreme Court appointed Justice Lodha Committee has suggested that two teams namely Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) be suspended for two years from playing in the cash-rich tourney.

     

    Moreover, Gurunath Meiyappan, the son-in-law of ex-BCCI chief and CSK owner N Srinivasan, and Rajasthan Royals owner Raj Kundra have also been suspended for five years from involvement in any type of cricket matches with the BCCI. Additionally, Meiyappan and Kundra have been banned for life from any cricketing activity as they have violated the rules of IPL and cricket.

     

    “The purity of the game has been affected by the actions of India Cements and CSK. Fans have been cheated. India Cements did not take any action against Meiyappan. I propose to impose sanctions on India Cement’s franchise by suspending it from the league for two years. RR can’t shrink responsibility by saying Kundra acted in personal capacity. RR is also suspended for two years from IPL,” Justice Lodha said.

     

    Informing the media that Meiyappan suffered a loss of Rs 60 lakh in bets, Justice Lodha said that Meiyappan’s passion for the game was questionable and that he put the game into disrepute as a team official.

     

    “Three RR players were arrested for charges of fixing in 2013. Also a player was approached this year. This shows all is not well in RR. The purity of game must remain central to cricket,” he added.
     

    Speaking about the future of the two franchisees that have been suspended, Justice Lodha said that it was for the BCCI to decide whether CSK or RR will be bought by another franchise.

     

    Clarifying that the committee had not decided any criminal liability, Justice Lodha said that the committee had acted on behalf of BCCI. “The law will take its own course. No criminal liability has been decided by us,” he said.

     

    The Lodha Committee was appointed by a Supreme Court Bench on 22 January. Its verdict will be final and binding on the BCCI, the promoters and owners of the IPL.

     

    The IPL match fixing scandal came to light in May 2013 when the Delhi Police arrested three Rajasthan Royals players S Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan for being involved in match fixing.

     

    Pertinent to note here is that the broadcasting rights of IPL, which currently vest with Multi Screen Media (MSM), are slated to come up for bidding in 2016-17. MSM had the rights to the T20 tourney for a period of nine years, which is up to 2017. Whether this landmark outcome of the 2013 match-fixing scandal will have an impact on the bidding price remains to be seen.

  • What spells success for Indian sports leagues?

    What spells success for Indian sports leagues?

    MUMBAI: The sports industry in emerging markets is changing rapidly today. Amongst the various changes that is impacting sports and its allied businesses, is the emergence of sports leagues.

     

    According to a white paper released in collaboration between GroupM ESP and IIM –Ahmedabad, the success of the league is dependent on factors such as the sport and its fan base, the performance of the national team for the sport, design of the league, initiatives to build the fan experience, relationship of the league with relevant sports associations and the involvement of celebrities in the league.

     

    By studying what worked and what didn’t, the report brings to light best practices in the formation and running of sports leagues in a manner that will make them successful.

     

    Sports – The game is changing

     

    Over the past 10 years, the sports firmament has changed fundamentally. There has been an increase in the marketing of sports as well as a rise in the use of sports marketing purposes.

     

    Research indicates that there has been a sharp increase in the governmental support to sports as it is believed to increase societal and economic welfare of the country as well as promote the nation on the global front.

     

    Increased economic activity has also contributed to the growth of sports and its following. Today, sports serves two purposes: One, to be a platform to create marketing opportunities for brands and secondly, to actually create value for sports fans.

     

    These twin purposes go hand in hand, and serve the business and industry as well as the sports fans. For brands and advertisers, it is a win-win situation, in so much as when they pay to sponsor or promote a sport; the sporting event offers them a platform to reach their audience.

     

    As per an industry study report, sports industry in both mature and emerging economies has been growing at a rate faster than the GDP. As of 2011, the size of the industry was estimated at $620 million, growing at a rate of 6 per cent. While the sports economy has always been strong in North America and Europe; in the recent past, it is experiencing a major push in emerging markets.

     

    The report further states that all the BRIC nations have shown impressive growth in sports (India – 17 per cent, China – 20 per cent, Brazil – 7 per cent and Russia – 53 per cent).The growth of sporting events in emerging markets has been accompanied with the rise of several sports leagues.

     

    Professional sports leagues like the Major League Baseball (MLB), National Basketball Association (NBA), National Football League (NFL), English Premier League (EPL) etc have achieved great success in North America (US and Canada) and Europe.

     

    The report states that these leagues have gained worldwide popularity and fan following and in turn has inspired the setting up of similar sport leagues in emerging countries such as India, South Africa, and Sri Lanka.

     

    With a number of new sports leagues being formed in the recent past, the report highlights interesting set of differences.  Some of these leagues are in infancy, a few others are already defunct, and there are a few which seem to have attained some degree of maturity.

     

    As per an industry study, it is estimated that in India, the proportion of spending by average household on education and recreation will rise from 5 per cent in 2005 to 9 per cent in 2025. This, coupled with the rise in middle-class segment (from 4 per cent to 41 per cent from 2005 to 2025) will present a huge opportunity for business of sports to cater to recreational needs of such a large population.

     

    Interest in sports has increased with economic, educational and social advancement of the society. These trends underlie the development and popularity of sports leagues. A brief overview of the various leagues operating within sports in India was analysed as follows:

     

    Hockey – Federation rivalry stymies the initial leagues

     

    There have been several attempts to set up Hockey Leagues in India. The first such attempt was with The Premier Hockey League which started in 2005, but folded up by 2008. Then came the World Series Hockey in 2012. These leagues have been able to attract fans as they presented a more exciting format of the game through minor modification of the rules. However, they failed to sustain interest in the game. Reason: existence of two rival national hockey federations which were involved in disputes. This impacted the participation of players in the leagues.

     

    The country currently has Hockey India, a national federation, which has started the Hockey India League (HIL) that has run two seasons and has performed better than the two earlier avatars.

     

    Cricket – Success after a false start

     

    The professional league trend in cricket began with the launch of the Indian Cricket League (ICL), which was started by Zee Group, a television broadcast company. The BCCI in its wisdom did not endorse ICL and banned players contracted with BCCI from playing in ICL matches. It also exerted pressure on the International Cricket Council, the international cricket federation to stop other national federations from supporting ICL.  With this concerted denial of support, ICL folded up in 2008, three years after it opened shop.

     

    BCCI then launched Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008, which forever changed the face of professional leagues in the country. IPL has attracted the best of the international players from across the globe.

     

    Kabaddi – The Indian contact sport that has touched the heart of millions

     

    The Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) was started in 2014 with eight teams from different cities. The league is supported by the national and international Kabaddi federations. The teams follow the system of salary caps and its owners are personages from the industry, movies, and sports business. The first season of PKL enjoyed unprecedented viewership and fan following. Another league – The World Kabaddi League which began at around the same time as PKL could not duplicate the success of the latter, even though it had a number of film stars as owners of teams in their league.

     

    Badminton – Shuttling towards increased popularity

     

    Badminton started becoming increasingly popular in India and attracted huge following with the emergence of some world-class players. The Indian Badminton League (IBL) is managed commercially by a sports management firm and has the backing and support of the Badminton Association of India. It started the competitive games in 2013, and was fairly popular as it was able to attract some foreign players, including the world’s number one. It failed though to get some of the best Chinese players. Indian Badminton League has recently been facing issues related to scheduling due to other international tournaments.

     

    Findings

    • Fan acceptability of Leagues – Rather than financial viability, fan acceptability seems to be a better measure of predicting future success of leagues.  To sports leagues and businesses, sportsmen and others who are investing their time, effort and money in sports leagues, this is an important parameter to track and follow-up with concerted action to improve the chances of success.
    • Choice of Sports – The choice of sports can impact the success of a league. Higher the fan base of a sport, the more the fan base of the leagues in that sport. Also, better the performance of the national team, in a particular sport, the higher is the acceptability of the league in that sport. Managers, sports persons and sponsors investing in a league will benefit from analysing the two factors mentioned above, even as they analyse the probable future of the sporting league. Starting a league for a sport that has a large fan following and a national team that is performing at par may be a way to ensure its early survival and growth.
    • Design of the League – The design of the league, more specifically the salary structure can impact the success of the league. Salary caps tend to distribute talent across teams, and lead to more intense competition which has a positive effect on the success.
    • Team Location – Regional teams can help in building team character. Thus, regional team locations enable association with fans of that particular region resulting in a captive fan base, while providing a competitive spark with respect to other regional teams.
    • Game Format and Scheduling – Fans respond positively to minor changes in the game format, but are alienated by major changes. The timing and scheduling of games can impact the success of the league.
    • Fan Experience – The more the social media initiatives by the league, the more the fan acceptability.  Improve the TV viewing experience through engaging broadcast and improve fan acceptability. Employ greater in-stadia engagement for higher fan acceptability of the league.
    • Players – When top regional players, famous foreign players and world class sportsmen participate in the league games, what happens is a cascading of their respective following into the league following. So each of these people are stakeholders in enhancing fan engagement and acceptance.
    • League – Federation Leadership -The relationship between the league and the federation can impact the success of the league. Starting a league in harmony and full cooperation with the federation that controls the game is almost a hygiene factor for the success of the league.
    •  

    Celebrity involvement

     

    Celebrity involvement is a key factor in increasing acceptability and marketability of the league. Stars in the game and stars outside the game are a good combination for league success.

     

  • “Special ads will soon start storming in for mobile phones:” Rajdeepak Das

    “Special ads will soon start storming in for mobile phones:” Rajdeepak Das

    At a young age he decided to convert his passion into profession. At 21 he made his first ad and by the time he was 23, he joined Contract Advertising. At 25 he was off to BBDO Bangkok where he waited outside the office for 17 days as the security did not allow him to go inside due to a language problem.

     

    At 28 he started BBDO Mumbai with five creative officers and five interns and took the company to new heights. He has many accolades against his name and one of them is being the youngest executive creative director. He is Leo Burnett India chief creative officer Rajdeepak Das.

     

    A Bob Dylan and Steve Jobs fan, a firm believer in Hope, Faith, Love and Charity, Das speaks to Indiantelevision.com’s Anirban Roy Choudhury about the changing advertising industry and the role that mobile is going to play in near future.

     

    Excerpts:

     

    Do you think the ad fraternity will have to start adapting to the growth of smartphones in India?

     

    Special ads will soon start storming in for the mobile phone where the format is not landscape anymore. It will be more candid, more catchy, sometimes longer and interactive. Mobile opens a number of avenues like geo-targetting. For example, there is no point in showing a Bandra person, an ad about Delhi. Moreover, mobile also enables us to know the behavior and attitude of users. The adaptation has already started and the ad fraternity is creating special creatives and strategies for smart phones.

     

    Do you think the device mobile phone is used a little too often in ads now?

     

    We have 300 million TV and 500 million mobile phones and therein lay the answers. In next 10 years, the country will have 1.2 billion mobile phones, which will be three or four times more than a TV. People are on Facebook, Whatsaap, Twitter and the amount of time they spend on the mobile is way more than TV. The time spent on mobile phones is only likely to increase more with time.

     

    Let’s take prime time for example. What has happened to prime time? It used to be from 7 pm – 10 pm but that has changed. Now the prime time is the time you are in the toilet or traveling. The phone has enabled us to decide our prime time where we can consume content at our own convenience. The mobile phone is a major target of brands and hence in every second ad there is a phone on the screen.

     

    Do you think different treatment should be given to campaigns curated for a high magnitude and prolonged event like IPL to avoid repetitiveness?

     

    Vodafone came up with 52 days 52 ads with their Zoo Zoo campaign during IPL. So variety is possible. We launched around five ads during this IPL. Sometimes repetition is necessary to make something noticeable hence you can’t totally get away with it.

     

    What role is social media playing in advertising? Are shares and likes becoming one of the prime demands of clients?

     

    I think this is one of the best times to be in the creative field. While we are solving clients’ problems, it’s not about shares and likes. It’s more about creating something that addresses the problem.

     

    Gone are the days when advertising was just creating an ad. Now it is about understanding issues like clients problem, business problem etc. At times you might not even need an ad. A simple change in packaging, understanding the ground territory or understanding what people want can do the trick

     

    At Burnett, we follow the philosophy of Human Kind, so we try to understand the problem from people’s point of view. Social media has emerged as a weapon for us. The interaction has become faster, we get to know the reaction immediately and if we see that we need to correct it somewhere, we go ahead and do it.

     

    Crash the IPL was a great example of crowd sourcing. Do you think following its success, it can become a trend and disrupt the ad agency?

     

    If I want something to be written, I can go to the crowd. There are many amateur writers. All of them will send something but will it carry a solution for the brand? Maybe… maybe not.

     

    It is not necessary that quality content can become a quality solution. So with crowd sourcing, the chances of hit are less and miss are more while an agency will surely provide you with a solution.

     

    Interaction with crowd will always be there. There will be more interactive creative campaigns, which will make people talk about it. But for the time being, I don’t see crowd sourcing becoming a trend and hurting ad agencies.

     

    Due to YouTube and other technical innovations, foreign ads have become easily accessible and with that emerged a competitive debate. Where do you see us compared to them?

     

    What works in India will work anywhere in the world. We cry, we smile, we fall in love, we have desires and greed and that’s the same everywhere. I love Japanese ads and ads of Thailand. So if it is good work, it will garner global recognition.

     

    The difference is in quality of production. Their crafting is better than us and they exhibit some quality work. Having said that, we are not far behind. Our directors are getting better as is our story telling. At the creative thinking level, we are at par if not better than them.

     

    Do you think out of the box ideas, which once created can be recreated? And if it is recreated, will it work?

     

    It depends on the story telling and how well the execution is. Dil Chahta Hai,Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara and Rock On had the same story. Did it work? Of course it did. It worked and it became bigger and better. So out of the box concepts will always stand out and there will be many more recreations. It will be a mix of new and old, depending on the need of the brand. Everything will work if it is done eloquently.

     

    What should young minds who aspire to become an ad man do? Is classroom education enough?

     

    Classroom education is not enough. They should start working as soon as possible. Work for small clients, less money but work. They should start practicing the art as early as possible. The greatest of minds in this world are college dropouts. I am not insisting anyone to dropout from college but them becoming big have a reason.

     

    They learn by themselves. For them, learning 5+5 = 10 is not as easy as it is for someone in college and schools. In the process of learning 5+5 = 10, they learnt 10 different things, which made them what they are. I want all of them who aspire to become an ad man to start working as early as possible and that will take them a long way.

     

    What do you like about the advertising industry and is there anything that the industry should change?

     

    The beauty of our industry is that whether it is an intern or a chief creative officer, we all start by looking at an empty white page. Whoever cracks the idea and comes with a better concept is victorious. So there’s a subtle unanimity in all hierarchal positions. In other words, there is no boss or everyone is the boss.

     

    The thing that the advertising industry needs to change is to stop making an ad, if it is not necessary. An ad is not the solution of each and every problem. We should understand the problem and address it. After duly understanding the problem, if there is a need of an ad, only then should we go for it. Ads shouldn’t be a subject of hatred for consumers. We can’t keep interrupting someone with a pop-up ad. By doing that, we will only manage to get skipped and nothing beyond that.

     

    What’s the way forward for Rajdeepak Das?

     

    I love what I do and there is one thing that I will do till my last breath and that is ads. I want to keep making quality ads provide creative solutions to brands, which helps them rejuvenate their statistics. I believe in the four magical words that I saw written on Steve Jobs’ grave: Hope, Faith, Love and Charity and that says it all.

  • IPL 8: Mumbai Indians – CSK finale most watched match with 7.4% TVR

    IPL 8: Mumbai Indians – CSK finale most watched match with 7.4% TVR

    MUMBAI: With 7.4 per cent TVR, Indian Premier League (IPL) finale played between Mumbai Indians (MI) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) registered the highest viewership of the season.

     

    On the other hand, the qualifier match between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and CSK emerged as the second most viewed match of the season with 5.6 per cent TVRs, while with 5.5 per cent TVR the first qualifier between CSK and MI grabbed the third slot.

     

    The eighth edition of the IPL witnessed a constant growth in each and every segment. While the money raised through advertisement was better than the previous edition, viewership and advertising also saw a significant growth this season.

     

    Television rating auditor, TAM analytics shows that IPL 8 was sampled by 192 million unique viewers, and the time spent by the viewers fetched a nine per cent growth with 46 minutes and 17 seconds in 2015 as compared to 42 minutes and 24 seconds of 2014.

     

    The average TVTs section saw 21 per cent growth while the TVRs saw 20 per cent growth as the tourney fetched 3.8 TVR this year compared to 2.9 TVRs  last year. Seventy one per cent of the All India Universe tuned to watch IPL 8 matches, which is almost identical to the seventh edition.

     

    Vodafone continued to be the most prominent brand on the basis of ad volumes purchased during live telecast. It should be noted that Vodafone occupied this spot in the last edition too. Amazon also successfully retained its berth at the second position, while other e-commerce ventures like PayTM and Snapdeal replaced Flipkart.com and Airtel Cellular Services at third and fourth place respectively. Vimal Pan Masala grabbed the fifth slot, which was occupied by Big Bazar in 2014.

     

    To view the full viewership list click here