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Tag: New Zealand cricket

  • “India is the biggest cricket market on the planet”: Scott Weenink & Rajesh Kaul

    “India is the biggest cricket market on the planet”: Scott Weenink & Rajesh Kaul

    Mumbai: Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) has secured the exclusive television and digital rights to broadcast and stream all New Zealand Cricket matches, featuring BLACKCAPS and WHITE FERNS, in India and associated territories for the next seven years. This agreement, spanning from 1 May 2024, to 30 April 2031, encompasses India’s tours of New Zealand in the 2026-27 and 2030-31 seasons, as well as all bilateral Tests, ODIs, and T20Is held in New Zealand during this period.

    As per media reports, the deal is estimated to be valued between $90 million to $100 million (equivalent to approximately Rs 749 crore to Rs 833 crore). All matches will be telecast and streamed live across SPNI’s sports channels and will be livestreamed on Sony LIV. Additionally, SPNI’s digital rights in India will be co-exclusive with Amazon Prime for the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons.

    New Zealand have enjoyed major success in the recent years, with the inaugural World Test Championship title win in 2021 highlighting their accolades. The men’s team also finished runners-up in the previous T20 World Cup, winning millions of hearts with their spirited display.

    Subsequently, cricket fans in the Indian subcontinent can look forward to watching the BLACKCAPS in action against India, Australia, England and Pakistan among others until the end of the 2031 season.

    Indiantelevision.com had a delightful conversation with SPNI’s chief revenue officer – Distribution & International Business and Head – Sports Business, Rajesh Kaul and New Zealand Cricket CEO Scott Weenink, where each shared their take on the significance of this deal, evolution of digital platforms & streaming services and much more…

    Edited excerpts

    On Sony Pictures Networks India leveraging this partnership to enhance its sports content offerings

    Kaul: We are a global multi-sports arena and the premier destination for sports fans. Our aim has been to strengthen our sports portfolio not only with cricket offerings but also in Tennis, Football, WWE, Fight sports, motorsports, domestic leagues and multi-sporting events among others.   We have been acquiring prestigious marquee properties at regular intervals and our sports acquisition strategy has always been guided by rational decisions. With the current media rights scenario in India, we feel that NZC cricket rights is something which adds significant value to our portfolio which currently comprises England and Wales Cricket Board and Sri Lanka Cricket.  Apart from Team India’s series in these nations, we will also broadcast the high-octane non-India cricket series hosted by these countries. We are also the home to the next two editions of the UEFA EUROs as well as home to three out of four Grand Slams on our network with Australian Open, Roland Garros & US Open. Recently, we announced the extension of broadcast rights for the UEFA Club competitions for an additional three years. Our objective has always been very clear, i.e., to serve sports fans with premium content in the form of diverse global and local properties and we will continue the momentum in the future.

    On this collaboration contributing to the development of cricket in New Zealand

    Weenink: Well, it’s obvious. India is the biggest cricket market on the planet. This is a big deal, which will help service the game of cricket in New Zealand from the grassroots up, men and women, and juniors. Also, by increasing the exposure of NZC and NZC Players to the Indian market, we are increasing both the commercial value of NZC and the individual intellectual property value of NZC Players.

    On the role of digital platforms and streaming services evolving in the broadcasting of cricket matches, particularly in the context of this partnership

    Weenink: AT NZC we’ve long held that digital and streaming is the future. I don’t think there’s much doubt about that.

    However, it’s also true that linear is still massive in terms of the present day – representing more than half the consumer market in India.

    Having an arrangement in which we can provide our games on both linear and digital is very important to us.

    On some other strategies you have in place to maximize the success of this partnership and some innovative plans Sony Pictures Networks India has for enhancing the viewer experience during New Zealand cricket matches

    Kaul: Cricket is the most popular sport in India and bilateral cricket series rights provide a broadcaster with access to regular high-quality cricket. The New Zealand Black Caps & Silver Ferns enjoy a strong following in India due to their highly competitive spirit and good sporting behaviour. Stars like Kane Williamson & Trent Boult are among the top followed international stars among cricket fans. Cricket rights for New Zealand helps in providing around the clock offering for sports fans. The addition of NZC to our cricket portfolio, which already includes ECB and SLC, helps engage the cricket fan with our network regularly through the year.

    Our programming initiatives also play an integral role in attracting new audiences and we will continue the momentum with New Zealand Cricket matches. Sony Sports Network (SSN) broadcasts all the India matches in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. For an enhanced viewing experience, we have virtual reality sets and augmented reality graphics. Our live studio show for cricket, Extraaa Innings, is an iconic SSN show since 2003. It has a relaxed, conversational manner of cricket coverage which eases into Indian homes like a member of their family and presents cricket from a unique human-interest angle which focuses on the emotions rather than over-analysis or microstats. In addition to this, we have always reached out to our cricket fans through our iconic campaigns like Love for Cricket knows no Boundaries, Ashes – Platinum Standard of Cricket among others and will also continue to do so with NZC series.

  • FanCode expects India West Indies series to grow its user base to 100 mn sports fans

    FanCode expects India West Indies series to grow its user base to 100 mn sports fans

    MUMBAI: Last year the Dream Sports owned digital platform FanCode had taken the media rights for the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) till 2024. The Indian cricket team will play West Indies in an eight match series comprising three ODIs and five Twenty20 Internationals. The series runs from 22 July – 7 August 2022. 

    Speaking to Indiantelevision.com FanCode co-founder Yannick Colaco highlighted the importance of matches being played during primetime. “We expect the event to grow our FanCode user base to 100 million sports fans.”

    The platform is being innovative in terms of its pricing. He explains that the focus has always rested on subscription packaging being inclusive and easily accessible for sports fans across the country. “For the India tour, fans will get to watch the entire tour of three ODIs and five T20s by paying just Rs 99. Fans will also be able to take a monthly subscription of FanCode, which will include events like The Hundred, and other cricket internationals featuring New Zealand, Bangladesh, Pakistan & Zimbabwe, in addition to the India West Indies tour for Rs 199. First, we are also creating an “ad free” premium subscription, where users will get to watch each match without ads for the price of Rs 159,” he explains.

    He further noted that the Caribbean is home to some of the most entertaining cricket played in the world. “Our partnership with Cricket West Indies is a comprehensive one, which includes close to 400 matches from the Caribbean featuring some of world cricket’s biggest and brightest stars, over a four year period. The partnership has allowed us to give millions of cricket fans in India the opportunity to experience FanCode and the many digital innovations we are bringing to fans in redefining their sports consumption experience.”

    He goes on to note that FanCode is the first-ever digital-only platform to host an India bilateral series and the entire coverage of the event will be customised for digital audiences. The aim he noted is to put the fan first. “Fans will now have the ability to choose the highlights they want to watch with the “real time highlights” feature, access real time stats like wagon wheels, manhattans, etc., through interactive overlays on the “Match Hub” and choose their commentator of choice.”

    FanCode, as had been reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com, has sublicensed the broadcast rights to DD Sports. It marks the first time in over two decades that the pubcaster will air India cricket exclusively. “We are laser focused on providing great user experiences and solving for accessibility gaps that fans have in sports consumption & experience. DD Sports reach in smaller cities and towns is unbeatable, making it the ideal partner to help broadcast the tour on linear television while we continue to build a superior digital experience for fans nationally” he said.

    Talking about cricket properties that FanCode has besides WICB, he said that the platform also has partnerships with the English Cricket Board, New Zealand Cricket, the ICC, Afghanistan Cricket Board, Zimbabwe Cricket, Cricket Ireland, Cricket Scotland, KNCB (Netherlands), Cricket Namibia and Malaysia Cricket. It is the exclusive partner for Vitality Blast, The Hundred, which are events done by the English Cricket Board. For the record, The Hundred is both a recently introduced event and a new format. There are 100 balls per innings for example.

    Also Read: FanCode & DD Sports partner for exclusive TV broadcast of India tour of West Indies

    It is also worth noting that Vitality Blast was established by the England & Wales Cricket Board in 2003 as the first professional Twenty20 league in the world. It was back when the concept of Twenty20 cricket was alien to India. Sharing his views on The Hundred, he said the format has been well thought out and is innovative in achieving its goal of engaging younger audiences better. “The response for the event last year was very positive and we expect the fan base for the event to grow exponentially this year.”

    FanCode is also the ICC exclusive partner for all Pathway (World Cup Qualifier) events. It is also the exclusive partner for the cricket boards in Zimbabwe, Ireland and Afghanistan. In addition to this, it is a partner for New Zealand’s Twenty20 competition Super Smash.

    When asked if viewership for non India cricket is growing, he said, “Sports fandom has grown exponentially in India, especially among the youth. What has been missing is the depth in coverage of non-India cricket events and an integrated experience for sports fans. We are constantly striving to solve both these fan problems & the response has already been tremendous, as evident by over 50 million sports fans who have used FanCode”.

  • Prime Video to stream live cricket in India starting 1 January 2022

    Prime Video to stream live cricket in India starting 1 January 2022

    Mumbai: Amazon Prime Video has entered the live cricket streaming play starting 1 January 2022 with a test series between New Zealand and Bangladesh. In November, Prime Video secured the exclusive live cricket rights from New Zealand Cricket, the governing body for professional cricket in New Zealand.

    As a part of the multi-year deal, international men’s and women’s cricket matches played in New Zealand – across ODI, T20, and tests – will be available exclusively on Prime Video.

    Prime members will be able to exclusively stream the series between the Indian and New Zealand Women’s Cricket Teams in February 2022, as well as, the Indian and New Zealand Men’s Cricket Teams presently scheduled for November 2022. This is in addition to matches that are presently scheduled to be played between the Men’s teams as a part of Bangladesh’s tour of New Zealand in January 2022, South Africa’s tour in February 2022, Australia’s tour in March 2022, and Netherland’s tour in March/ April 2022.

    “Cricket is undoubtedly the most loved sport in India and our collaboration with New Zealand Cricket underlines our commitment to give our customers what they want. The upcoming series will be Prime Video’s first foray into live cricket in India,” said Prime Video India country head Gaurav Gandhi. “The New Zealand cricket -team has built a reputation of being one of the finest in the game and undoubtedly cricket fans in India will be delighted experiencing the exciting sporting action live exclusively on Amazon Prime Video. We are excited to start our live cricket journey in 2022 – an action-packed year that will see both Indian women’s and men’s teams tour New Zealand.  Today is truly Day 1 of our sports journey.”

    “Starting January 2022, New Zealand cricket has a new home in India – Amazon Prime Video – and we are looking forward to bringing New Zeland’s summer game to our fans and cricket lovers in India as they catch us live on the service,” said the captain of the New Zealand national team Kane Williamson. “India’s love for cricket and entertainment is well-known around the world. I am thrilled that Prime Video will be exclusively streaming all the exciting on-field action to our fans in India.”

    “The passion and love of the Indian cricket fan is quite unmatched! The country and cricket fans have a very special place in our hearts,” said the captain of the New Zealand Women’s cricket team Sophie Devine. “With a new, exclusive home on Amazon Prime Video, we hope to engage and delight viewers across the country. I am excited to play against the Indian Women’s Cricket team this summer. They are a worthy opponent, and I can bet it will be an intense cricketing season between our teams.”

    “It’s a very exciting time for cricket broadcasting as we move into live cricket being streamed exclusively on a service as widely followed as Amazon Prime Video in India,” said New Zealand Cricket chief executive David White. “Cricket is followed closely in India and our association with Amazon Prime Video will help us extend our reach and connect with fans and followers in the country. We are delighted that the viewers in India will be able to watch all the tours coming up in 2022 live on Prime Video, and look forward to offering all the on-pitch excitement to viewers in an immersive and engaging manner.”

    To watch the matches, Prime members can go to the Prime Video app on their respective devices and will see matches shown in a carousel for live cricket or they can search for ‘New Zealand Cricket’ in the search bar.

  • Amazon Prime Video to livestream WNBA games in India

    Amazon Prime Video to livestream WNBA games in India

    Mumbai: Enhancing its portfolio of live sports streaming, Amazon Prime Video and the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) on Thursday announced that Prime members in India can live-stream WNBA games during the league’s historic 25th season with the next opportunity to watch in India on 21 August. The move follows a multi-year agreement between Amazon and the WNBA in May this year, giving Prime Video exclusive streaming rights in India to select league games each season of the agreement. 

    The WNBA games will mark the first live sports streaming experience for Prime Video viewers in India.

    “We are happy to bring the WNBA games to our viewers,” said Amazon Prime Video, India spokesperson, Chaitanya Divan. “We are confident that the world-class, friction-free live experience of the WNBA games on Amazon Prime Video will delight the growing base of basketball fans in India.”

    Prime members in India will have exclusive access to six games from the second half of the 2021 WNBA season, said the streaming platform in a statement.

    The season, which tipped off 5 May, is available with Prime Video streaming its next WNBA game between the New York Liberty and the Seattle Storm on 21 August followed by five other games. For the viewers who have missed out on the previous games, an entire replay will be available on the app in English, it added.

    Currently, in its 25th season, the WNBA is a bold, progressive basketball league that stands for the power of women. Featuring 12 teams, the WNBA is a unique sports property that combines competition and entertainment with a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, and social responsibility. 

    “We are pleased to offer WNBA games to our fans in India through Amazon Prime Video,” said NBA India, head of global content and media distribution, Sunny Malik. “The collaboration will provide easy access to the games, expand our visibility and reach in the region and educate fans further about one of the most popular sports leagues in the world.”

    Schedule of six games airing on Prime Video during the second half of the 2021 WNBA season:

    1. 21 August – New York : Seattle – 4:30 a.m
    2. 27 August –  Washington : Dallas – 4:30 a.m
    3. 1 September – Minnesota : New York – 5:30 a.m
    4. 3 Sepetmeber – Seattle : New York – 7:30 a.m
    5. 8 September – Dallas : Connecticut –  5:30 a.m
    6. 17 September – Atlanta : Los Angeles – 4:30 a.m

  • Amazon Prime Video India forays into live sports with New Zealand Cricket rights

    Amazon Prime Video India forays into live sports with New Zealand Cricket rights

    KOLKATA: In its latest move, Amazon Prime Video has announced its first foray into live sports in India, with the acquisition of India territory rights for New Zealand Cricket through 2025/26. With this announcement Amazon Prime Video becomes the first Indian streaming service to secure exclusive live cricket rights from a major cricketing board.

     Under the multi-year deal between Amazon and the New Zealand Cricket Board, Prime Video will become the one-stop streaming destination for all international cricket matches to be played in New Zealand for both men’s and women’s cricket, across ODI, T20 and Tests starting late 2021. The deal includes Team India’s tour of New Zealand in early 2022, and a second tour, the dates for which will be announced later. The rights for 2020-2021 season starting later this month is intended to be syndicated by Amazon.

    The Indian men’s cricket team receives unrivalled support and unites fans across the entire country. With two highly-anticipated tours of the Indian team to New Zealand, over the next 6 years, cricket fans in India are in for a treat! The New Zealand men’s cricket team, also known as the Black Caps, enjoys world-wide popularity and is ranked No.3 in ODI and No. 2 in Test Cricket by the International Cricket Council.

    “Over the last few years Amazon Prime Video has become the go-to destination for world class entertainment in India – be it our Amazon Original Series or the biggest blockbuster movies across languages,” Amazon Prime Video director & country general manager Gaurav Gandhi said.

     “We are excited to add India’s most loved game – Cricket – to our content selection for our Prime Video customers, and we are thrilled to work with New Zealand Cricket on this endeavor as they have a strong, passionate and much-loved cricket team, and the cricketing rivalry between the two countries has been fantastic. We are happy to make this collaboration with New Zealand Cricket our first live sport offering in India, and are confident that our Prime members will be delighted with this initiative,” Gandhi added.

    “This partnership with Amazon Prime Video is massive for NZC – we’re delighted and proud to be teaming up with such a famous and successful brand. As we’ve said before, the future of live sport is streaming and in Amazon Prime Video we have a partner right at the center of the industry; innovative, trend-setter and well-known for putting fans and subscribers first,” New Zealand Cricket chief executive David White said.

    “One of NZC’s key goals is to extend our teams’ global reach and to build closer relationships around the world and, in terms of that particular objective, we don’t think we could be in better hands. India has always been important for viewership of NZC; no other country follows cricket like India, so it’s exciting to be announcing this agreement with India’s leading streamer,” he added.

    The Indian territory New Zealand Cricket rights package is the latest in Prime Video’s growing line-up of live sports around the world including Thursday Night Football, the Premier League, ATP Tour Events, WTA, the US Open (tennis), UEFA Champions League, Autumn Nations Cup (rugby), and the Seattle Sounders FC. Fans can also subscribe to streaming services such as Eurosport, MLB.TV, NBA League Pass, and PGA TOUR LIVE through Prime Video Channels. This in addition to a selection of popular docuseries for sports fans, including The Test: A New Era for Australia’s Team, which follows the Australian men’s cricket team during the 2018/2019 season, and Emmy-winning Amazon Original All or Nothing, among many others.

  • Star Sports bags New Zealand cricket rights

    Star Sports bags New Zealand cricket rights

    MUMBAI: Star Sports has acquired the broadcast and digital rights for New Zealand Cricket for all men’s and women’s international matches being organised in New Zealand for the next three years for the Indian subcontinent and South-East Asia.

    India is expected to play a total of three Tests, 10 ODIs, and three T20s during this period in that country.

    The first tournament to be broadcast under Star Sports’ partnership with New Zealand Cricket will be West Indies’ tour of New Zealand beginning from 1 December 2017. The partnership will see many high-octane international series, including a resurgent Pakistan’s tour of New Zealand and the much-anticipated tri series between Australia, New Zealand, and England in early 2018, being broadcast on Star Sports’ rich bouquet of offerings.

    A Star India spokesperson said, “Star Sports is proud to become the home for New Zealand Cricket in India. In recent years, the New Zealand cricket team has delivered a strong performance on the field, taking it to number one in the T20 rankings. With two India tours to New Zealand over the next two years, Indian sports fans are in for very exciting cricket on Star Sports.”

    New Zealand Cricket chief executive David White said, “We’re delighted to form this partnership with Star, India’s leading sports broadcaster, and a market-leader in the industry. It’s great to be aligned with such go-ahead, progressive broadcasters, well known for their innovative approach, and for putting fans and businesses first.”

  • Sporty Solutionz signs multi-year media rights deal with New Zealand Cricket

    Sporty Solutionz signs multi-year media rights deal with New Zealand Cricket

    MUMBAI: Sporty Solutionz has signed a multi-year media rights deal with New Zealand Cricket. The deal enables Sporty Solutionz to sub-license New Zealand Cricket rights until 2016 and 2017 in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and other parts of the sub-continent outside India. This will involve all cricket hosted by New Zealand Cricket during the 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons.

    During the period of the contract, New Zealand Cricket will play host to eight international series, including three visits from Pakistan, two from Sri Lanka, and a visit each from Bangladesh, Australia and the West Indies.

    Sporty Solutionz’s chief executive officer Ashish Chadha rates the new relationship as extremely valuable. “We are proud to be associated with New Zealand Cricket,” said Chadha and added, “We are confident of broadcasting the action to previously unexplored territories to ensure the best reach for cricket played in New Zealand.”

    “Of the eight series NZC will host during the period of our contract, six will involve teams from the sub-continent: Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh – all of which play exciting cricket. On average, one of these teams will be playing every six months in New Zealand over the next three years – and I’m sure cricket lovers in the sub-continent are going to witness some exciting encounters,” he highlighted.

    NZC chief executive officer David White welcomed the agreement and said he was looking forward to working with Sporty Solutionz over the term of the contract period.

    “The next three seasons are shaping up as an exciting time for New Zealand Cricket and the Blackcaps, and we’re delighted to have Sporty Solutionz as a media rights partner,” said White.

     

    “At a time when the Blackcaps are making excellent progress as an international team, this new partnership will ensure their exposure to an ever-increasing media audience,” added White.