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Tag: Star Sports

  • Star Sports CEO Gautam Thakar steps down

    Star Sports CEO Gautam Thakar steps down

    KOLKATA: Within a few days of Uday Shankar stepping down, another top-rung professional has called it quits at Walt Disney owned Star India. According to sources, Gautam Thakar has stepped down as Star Sports CEO to start his own venture.

    Those close to the development say that Thakar’s departure was not a question of if, but when. However, his last date at India’s largest sports broadcaster has not been decided yet. In the interim, Star TV Network executive vice president Sanjog Gupta has stepped in to handle the sports division.

    Thakar was appointed Star Sports CEO back in 2018. During his career, which spans over two decades, he has worked with renowned brands like LivingSocial, eBay, P&G. He has an MBA from IIM Lucknow and a Bachelor’s in commerce from Sydenham College, Mumbai.

  • Star Sports brings back the excitement in MI vs CSK IPL 2020 opener

    Star Sports brings back the excitement in MI vs CSK IPL 2020 opener

    MUMBAI: It promised a lot, and it did deliver. The Star Sports broadcast of the inaugural match of the IPL 2020 at the Sheikh Zayed stadium in Abu Dhabi between arch rivals Mumbai Indians (MI) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) served all the dishes that make for a delightful platter. Thankfully, there was no gaudy, boring opening ceremony. The focus was on the sport. The venue, well it looked, perfectly fit for cricket with a green carpet on the ground. The sport too lived up to its potential. At least for the viewer at home on his Disney + Hotstar service or on their Star Sports channels.

    A rusty looking MI side muffed many a chance on the field and let a fitter looking –though having more retired players – Chennai Super Kings romp home with enough balls to spare in the twentieth over. The Rohit Sharma-led team began like they have done in many a previous IPL – losing their inaugural game. Their sloppiness in the field aided by rather inexplicable field placings, Jasprit Bumrah’s inability to bowl the yorker which he is renowned for and a collapse by most of the batters helped ease CSK’s passage to victory

    Of course one has to hand it to Mahinder Singh Dhoni’s captaincy while making his bowling changes and field placements. Piyush Chawla’s audacious spinning spell which tied the MI batsmen in knots, deserve a mention. The fielding was sharp and catches the Chennai Super Kings held their catches. The ball seemed to chase Faff du Plessis in the outfield who accepted two mishits by the Mumbai Indian batsmen and one strike near the ropes, which he lobbed back on the playing field to catch.

    On the batting front there was the reborn Ambati Rayaduand supportive Faff du Plessis, who helped stabilize the CSK innings – after two of its batters Shane Watson and Murli Vijay – departed cheaply. Once he got his eye in, Rayadu thumped the ball all around – and over – the ground – hitting three maximums – and scoring a brisk 71. Du Plessis was steady as she goes accumulating runs at regular intervals, and then came Sam Curran with his hurricane six ball 18, just when the match seemed to be getting a tad tight for the CSKs.

    Sharma and his men appeared to be helpless bystanders and just watched the ball going past them to and over the boundary or for doubles and triples. CSK’s victory broke its five match losing streak against the MI.

    Sharma, on his part, has to go back to the planning board, after what can be best described as a pedestrian performance by his team against an older side. He himself needs to hit the treadmill as his waist line showed. More of the top order need to get amongst the runs, the fielding needs to be polished, and the bowlers need to get more time at the nets, turning their arm over with the evening-dew-laden slippery ball.

    The lack of stadium attendees – while we wanted to see a sea of faces painted, smiling, energized, disappointed, praying fervently – was felt, but only marginally. For players on the field, many found it strange and they expressed it as such, without the constant roar of the tens of thousands of cricket lovers. But in this age of Covid2019, sport has to be revived without fans in the stands, life has to go on with social distancing to prevent the SarsCov2 virus from finding more victims. Dhoni expressed this best when called on during the post-match presentation. He nearly walked up to the presenter but was told to step back, reminding him of the two-metre distancing rule that needs to be maintained. Dhoni was apologetic but expressed that it felt strange, different to be doing so.

    On television and OTT, Star Sports used some tricks, like canned audience roars, screams and yells, fans and sponsors representatives popping up on giant sized screens placed in the stadium from their homes. As did videos of the cheerleaders doing their routine during exciting moments of the match, Then the Disney Star India fans too shared their Instagram reels – short video clips by fans commenting on cricket, the IPL and their experiences while watching at home. The commentators of course added to the excitement by being higher pitched than they are prone to be so early on in the tournament.

    Around seven million viewers on Disney + Hotstar at peak is a good number, considering the streaming service has put the IPL telecast behind a pay wall. The adverts on it and on Star’s channels were a-plenty, whether TVCs or banners or offers popping up. Of course that means good revenues. That should come as good news for the TV broadcast industry – which like many other sectors – is struggling with a poor five-month period of clamped up ad spends.

    And it’s good tidings for sports and for cricket buffs, who number hundreds of millions in India. As Dhoni said during the pos- match presentation: “It’s great that cricket is back after so long. For us and for the devotees. It takes a lot for those behind the scenes. We can be critical. But it takes a gigantic effort to put it all together. A big thank you to all them.”

    Indeed. Cricket and IPL fans echo his sentiment.

    (Today’s match between Delhi Capitals and Kings Xi Punjab at 7:30 promises to be another cracker.)

  • Star Sports to bring a new avatar of Select Dugout for Dream11 IPL

    Star Sports to bring a new avatar of Select Dugout for Dream11 IPL

    MUMBAI: Star Sports, the official broadcaster of Dream11 IPL 2020, brings a whole new avatar of the Star Sports Select Dugout following last year’s massive success in IPL and CWC 2019. The Select Dugout this season will keep you ahead of the game with more predictions, drive better understanding of “why” the match is unfolding a certain way with contextual analysis and unrivaled use of technology in cricket broadcast. The legends come together again to help viewers and fans stay ahead of the game during these unprecedented times.

    The Select Dugout panel includes an exclusive and decorated set of experts from across continents who are flagbearers of the sport in their respective countries. The distinguished panel this year includes a batting expert in Brian Lara, a bowling expert in Brett Lee, a T20 coach in Dean Jones, an all-rounder in Scott Styris, a spin wizard in Graeme Swann and more experts from the T20 ecosystem. The Select Dugout squad will be part of the Star Sports Bio Bubble to bring the most tech-savvy coverage of the game. Select Dugout lovers who are passionate about the sport will witness beyond the usual audio commentary with an enhanced video viewing experience this year.

    Select Dugout this year plays a larger role with the tournament being played behind closed doors – so what new can fans expect this year? Dream11 IPL is all set to bring fans closer and spread the message of hope and togetherness and, Select Dugout will stand testament to this by engaging with fans as well as giving them an opportunity to pick on the brains of Select Dugout Experts via twitter questions. Select Dugout will take it up a notch with regards to the technology and the highly committed cricket purists will be privy to more demos and masterclasses and enriched analytical experience. An exciting segment awaits – our experts will dole out tips to choose the best fantasy XI for all the fantasy sports users.

    With a continued effort to provide an enhanced experience for fans, this year Select Dugout has gone one step forward with a new studio that promises to blow your mind.  Along with exciting content, get ready to witness never seen before technology and innovations that will make the Dream11 IPL 2020 journey with Star Sports Select an unforgettable experience.

    Commenting on the offering this year, Select Dugout Expert Brian Lara said, “It has always been an exciting experience to be part of the Select Dugout in the company of such elite experts of the T20 format. One advantage of the Dugout is that we bring real-time insights on what is going on in the minds of the players, predicting what is likely to happen next and the reason behind critical decisions taken on the field. Select Dugout is all about the game within the game, in-depth analysis of players’ technique, strategy and accurate predictions of the game which will help fans understand where the game could turn with the help of the latest technology and innovations in Cricket broadcast.”

    Select Dugout Expert Brett Lee said, “We plan to refine what we have been doing in the past few years and provide a deeper match experience for the fans. What Select Dugout aims to deliver is the experience of what actually goes on behind the scenes at a team’s dugout. With technology that helps us bring alive stories and strategies, we are always thinking of a ball ahead. It’s going to be a wonderful experience for fans to connect and come together to celebrate the biggest cricket extravaganza.”

    Tune into Star Sports 1 Select (SD & HD) from 19 September 2020 7.20 PM onwards to get insights and stay ahead of the game with your favourite Select Dugout Experts

  • VI joins as co-presenting sponsor for Dream11 IPL

    VI joins as co-presenting sponsor for Dream11 IPL

    NEW DELHI: The newest brand in the Indian arena, ‘Vi’ from Vodafone Idea Limited, has become the co-presenting sponsor of the upcoming Dream11 IPL 2020, scheduled to commence from 19 September. Vi has acquired the co-sponsorship rights of the live broadcast of T-20 premier league which will be held in Abu Dhabi, UAE and telecast on the Star Sports network. 

    The sponsorship announcement comes close on the heels of the leading telecom operator, Vodafone Idea Limited’s rebranding under a unified brand – Vi. The young, dynamic and vibrant brand will leverage its association with the most popular sporting event IPL, in its 2020 edition, to enhance awareness, build relevance and engage with the audience.

    Brand Vodafone has had a long-standing association with IPL since the beginning of the sporting event in 2008. The partnership helped it build high brand recall and affinity with television viewers and cricket lovers in India with its unique campaigns involving the lovable ZooZoos. Brand Idea has also actively participated in the previous editions of the tournament as sponsor of many teams and created memorable brand activation campaigns. The unified brand in its new avatar Vi will bring unique digital based experiences for Indian audiences this season.

    Vi is built to be strong, ever-dependable, agile, intuitive, and a brand in tune with the needs of the customers, in these ever-changing times. It is designed to help customers move ahead in life, for a better today and a brighter tomorrow. Vi is future ready and is committed to dynamically serve and enable a digital society to progress in life.

    Referring to Vi’s association with Dream11 IPL 2020 as the co-presenting sponsor, Vodafone Idea Limited chief digital transformation & brand officer  Kavita Nair said “Cricket is a religion in India, and Dream11 IPL as the property offers broader engagement with the audience than just as a sport, over a two months’ window. As a company, we have had a very long association with IPL. I am delighted that now, with the launch of Vi, we are carrying this legacy forward. Our association with Dream11 IPL 2020 will provide Vi, instantly connect with millions of viewers, and I am confident that this will not only help build awareness of Vi but also help in building relevance and customer confidence. I am sure Indians will be delighted to see us back on Dream11 IPL, albeit in a new avatar. Vi is vibrant, exciting, and throbs with the spirit of rising India. Soon after the launch of Vi, the excitement will continue for Indian consumers during their favorite T-20 league.”

    “Vodafone & Idea have both associated with Cricket on Star Sports in the past. We are delighted to have them onboard yet again in their new brand identity as Vi, and as the co-presenting sponsor for the broadcast of Dream11 IPL on Star Sports. We believe that the massive reach of the Star Sports network will help them take Vi’s new brand identity and proposition to millions of viewers across India,” said Star Sports CEO Gautam Thakar 

    Sport, like no other genre, has the ability to evoke passion and emotions amongst fans and followers. In a country where cricket has been akin to religion and is followed with passion and fervour, the Dream11 IPL has become one of the biggest sporting platforms designed to appeal to a wide section of consumers, pan-India.

  • Star Sports adds two more IPL associate sponsors

    Star Sports adds two more IPL associate sponsors

    Mumbai: The latest promo for the IPL by Star Sports features members of a building society felicitating their security guard Alok who has been single handedly serving them during the pandemic lockdown period. A heart-warming and touching film.

    The promo has also revealed another two associate sponsors’s Association of Mutual Funds of India (Mutal Funds sahi hai) and Gillette Guard 3 – to add to the earlier ones that had been displayed in the sponsorship plate of the first IPL film.

    To recollect: the co-presenting sponsors are Dream 11, online shopping major Amazon, digital payments company, and edutech unicorn Byju’s.

    The previously announced associate sponsors include: Cadbury Dairy Milk, Sunfeast, Coca-Cola, Polycab, Rummycircle, Kamla Pasand Masala and McDowell’s.

    That takes the total number of broadcast sponsors on board the IPL at 13.

    Experts expect Star Sports to touch last year’s sponsorship levels which is about Rs 2,200-2,400 crore, by the time the league ends in the UAE on 10 November.

  • Star Sports IPL promo tugs on fans’ emotional heartstrings

    Star Sports IPL promo tugs on fans’ emotional heartstrings

    Mumbai: The excitement has been building up amongst sports fans with the clock counting down to 19 September when the first ball of the Dream11 IPL 2020  will be bowled at the Dubai International Sports Stadium in the UAE. On the field will be fierce rivals –  the men in blue (Rohit Sharma’s Mumbai Indians) and the men in yellow (Mahendra Singh ‘Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings). Millions will be watching it on the big screen on the Disney Star India channels in seven languages or on Hotstar on their handsets.

    To  further whip up the emotional frenzy and inform fans that the IPL is back in its full glory to entertain them, Star Sports has launched  a promo – ‘Ek Saath Waali Baat. The promo encapsulates the mood of the nation, which continues to be puzzled and troubled by the ravages the Covid2019 pandemic is leaving in its wake, but it spotlight on the stories of hope and instances of people helping each other, neighbors sharing prospective job opportunities with those who have been laid off and a community welcoming a doctor with flowers as he returns from work. Additionally, it features a chef Youtube influencer who cooks and feeds those who are less privileged.

    “The  new campaign captures this feeling of togetherness while driving the message of hope and support, which has been critical in these trying times,” explained the Star Sports releae.

    “As a country, we have always come together during testing times and we have seen the same over the last few months. There has been a greater sense of community and empathy that has demonstrated the resilience of the human spirit. The Ek Saath Waali Baa’ campaign has been created with this same ethos. Dream11 IPL is the most-watched sporting event in the country and this year, it is even more special. The campaign builds on the sense of community and signals towards the much-needed emotion of hope,” added Star Sports CEO Gautam Thakar in the release.

    Keeping in mind the nationwide fandom for the tournament, the TVC will be released in multiple languages including Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu, Bengali, Marathi. Dream11 IPL has always evoked intense emotions amongst its vociferous fans and this time too, Star Sports promises to bring back the same thrill.

    The TVC also highlights the fact that the  second matche of each day is being played half an hour earlier at 7:30 pm, unlike last year when they began at 8 pm, which means audiences will stay glued to each clash till it ends.

    Every year the sports broadcaster launches a high-decibel campaign to promote the tournament. 

    In 2019, Star Sports and BCCI launched an interesting campaign GameBanayegaName. The film was conceptualized by Taproot Dentsu. It opened with a split-screen battle between young players in a maidan on one side and established VIVO IPL stars on the other, vying to grab screen space.

    In the same year,  team India captain Virat Kohli took it upon himself to bring happiness to the children of the nation. In collaboration with Star Sports, he launched the ‘Let Kids Play’ campaign which urged parents to allow kids to go out and play. The campaign focused on how outdoor activities build character, personality and leadership qualities in kids.

    The 2018 TVC  for the IPL asked “Kaun Jitega?” or “Who Will Win?” It was released in six languages, depicting the IPL as a Battle of Tigers – Sher vs Sher. The campaign portrayed a young child posing the question to all around him – as to who would win when two tigers take on each other? As his question goes unanswered by everyone, his father takes him to watch an IPL match, concluding that, when one the feline animal takes on another, the tiger is always the winner. The multi-lingual campaign actually helped promote the Star Sports efforts to invite viewers to watch the game in their native language and not just in Hindi or English.  

    It  was conceived and conceptualized by the Star Sports creative team and directed by Shlok Sharma in Bundelkhand and Prakash Varma of Nirvana Films in Hindi, along with Vijay Prabakaran in Tamil.

  • Dream11’s Harsh Jain-speak on the fantasy games leap

    Dream11’s Harsh Jain-speak on the fantasy games leap

    NEW DELHI: Fantasy sports platform Dream11 hit the headlines in early August when its bid of Rs 220 crore for the title sponsorship of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 came out tops, beating back the offers from larger firms. And it polevaulted its founders Harsh Jain and Bhavit Sheth into the limelight once again.

    Set up by the duo in 2008, the Mumbai-based company has more than 80 million users and is the first gaming startup from India to attain unicorn status, an industry term for startups valued above Rs 6,500 crore ($1 billion).

    With an array of top-notch investment firms across the globe, including Kalaari Capital, Multiples Equity, Tencent Holdings and Steadview Capital Management, Dream11 is one of the most stable and thriving start-up ecosystems. Dream11 has expanded its offerings with Fancode, DreamX, Dream Sports Investments, Dream Sports Foundation, DreamSetGo, and DreamPay.  

    According to various media reports, the company spent Rs 785.08 crore on advertising and promotions during FY19, as against Rs 230.30 crore in FY18.

    Speaking at the Internet and Mobile Association of India’s (IAMAI’s) Marketing Conclave on 28 August, Jain explained why he chose to put Dream11’s hat in the IPL title sponsorship ring. "IPL will break all records this year as one billion people stuck at home due to pandemic will definitely watch the sporting event. Our successful associations with IPL in the past gave us courage too,” he said.

    With the Dream11 brand being hammered home all through the tournament, it’s quite likely that an additional few million might chose to download the app and get engaged with the fascinating opportunity to play the skill based matches. Of course, the app would further get embedded into young and old India’s minds.

    During his address, Jain highlighted the need to focus on product development more than on marketing. “I see a lot of products today which use marketing right from the start. I believe it is the wrong thing to do,” he pointed out. “First, you need to develop a product fit for the market and once it is achieved, you should then go for scaling it.”

    Jain explained that in 2008 when IPL was launched in India, it did so without any fantasy games. But today most sports in India cannot be imagined without a fantasy game element. Then there were the naysayers who dissuaded Jain, whose father Anand is a close associate of ace entrepreneur Mukesh Ambani, from foraying into the space when he returned to India after his education in the US.

    "All marketing pundits told us that fantasy games won’t bloom in India and it will be a complete failure, but we succeeded. It was during this time when Sheth (currently serving as a co-founder & COO) joined me in this journey," Harsh elaborated.  

    The initial three years were tough. The company suffered a cash crunch and other obstacles, but what kept them going was their digital agency, Red Digital, which managed social media accounts for  Discovery Networks, Reliance Foundation, and Mumbai Indians to name a few.  By 2012, the company had decided to go ahead with the freemium single match business.

     “Indian consumers don’t like to commit long term to certain products, they like instant gratification and high engagement.Since the time we have focused on organic reach, growth hacking, and targeted digital marketing . We focused on things like virality and getting users to invite their friends,” Jain shared.

    In 2014, the company reported a million registered users, which grew to 45 million in 2018. Last year, the company reported having more than a 80 million user base.

    Jain admitted, "From 2017 we started partnering with leagues and signed Harsha Bhogle as our first brand ambassador. In 2018, we roped in MS Dhoni and started TV advertising for the very first time, and launched the Dimaag Se Dhoni marketing campaign during the IPL 2018 ."  

    Like any other brand, Dream11 faced hurdles in its growth journey, and the biggest challenge was not being available on Google Play store, a hurdle they surmounted.

    “It has been a difficult journey to convince people to download our apps as an APK and answer questions about why we are not on play store. But if people find value, they will find it," Jain said.  

    According to the 2019 report published by the Indian Federation of Sports Gaming (IFSG) and KPMG, the number of fantasy sports operators saw 7x growth during 2016-2018, while the number of users grew by over 25x between June 2016 and February 2019.

    The report also pointed out that the overall revenue of fantasy sports in India saw a three-fold growth from Rs 920 crore in FY19 to Rs 2,470 crore in FY20. As per IFSG-KPMG report, Dream11 commands 90 per cent market share.

  • Decoding the influence of IPL 2020 on Disney+Hotstar’s paid subscriber base

    Decoding the influence of IPL 2020 on Disney+Hotstar’s paid subscriber base

    KOLKATA: Most of the Indian sports enthusiasts consider cricket as their religion. The upcoming season of the Indian Premier League will not only overwhelm the audience but will fill the void which has been due to the absence of major cricket tournaments in the last few months. There is no doubt that the official broadcaster Star Sports’ viewership will witness a rise during the league, but how Disney+Hotstar will benefit from it in terms of paid subscriptions is something to watch out for..

    The media giant Walt Disney Company, which owns Hotstar after the acquisition of 21st Century Fox, planned a grand entry of its streaming service Disney+ in March. Utilising the fandom for IPL, the company decided to integrate it with Hotstar to exploit the existing users. The pandemic had forced them to launch it in the absence of the cricket showbiz. However, despite all the odds, the platform has been able to garner 8.63 million subscribers as of 30 June. Now, most of the experts believe IPL is going to boost the number further.

    SBICap Securities institutional equity research head Rajiv Sharma is of the opinion that all the content available at this moment is on
    predictable lines despite having differentiated storytelling, but live sports are completely off the shell. “Earlier, IPL used to have at least some competition with other cricket tournaments before or after the event. The dearth of enough good events may lead to a 2x-3x increase in viewership and brand participation for IPL,” adds Sharma.

    Sharma, who is highly optimistic about IPL’s impact on Disney+Hotstar subscriber base, says that the number of new subscribers coming because of IPL will be 50 per cent higher as compared to earlier years. Moreover, the retention rate after the event will be 20-30 per cent higher; thanks to the library of Disney+.

    Elara Capital VP – research analyst (media) Karan Taurani states that the platform’s viewership will be negative this season. According to him, TV viewership will increase at a much higher rate as most of the people will be at home during the matches. He adds that he does not see any fresh subscribers coming to the platform for IPL specifically. 

    Mirum India joint CEO Sanjay Mehta differs from Taurani’s view. Mehta opines that lockdown has accustomed viewers to consume content through OTT services. According to him, many people have now formed a habit of enjoying OTT services on Smart TVs or using devices like Chromecast to enjoy it on a large screen. Coupled with the starvation of premium cricket events or other
    live sports, the new trends of consumption will benefit Disney+Hotstar subscription directly.

    He says the focus should be on highlighting the fact that Disney+Hotstar gives access to a huge amount of other premium content along with IPL.

    “Prima-facie, the decision to move IPL streaming to a premium account will see a decline in the overall digital audience. While I believe the core IPL fans will stick to Hotstar or the ones who don’t have a subscription may get onto the platform for the duration of the event. So we may see a spike for sure in short-term,” Isobar India COO Gopa Kumar comments. Notably, Jio has introduced new packs of Rs 499 monthly and Rs 799 quarterly plans giving access to Disney+Hotstar, which makes it clear that any Jio users will not enjoy IPL at zero cost this year.

    As the majority of people will be at home, there might be a slight dip. However, owing to single TV per household phenomenon at
    many places, you may see people logging in Disney+Hotstar to watch IPL,” he adds.

    Kumar thinks the platform will come up with a marketing campaign for IPL very soon. According to him, the engagement story, the real-time response from the audience and interactive formats will be the key narrative of communication. 

  • IPL 2020: Brands opt for spot buying over bigger packages

    IPL 2020: Brands opt for spot buying over bigger packages

    NEW DELHI: It was being coined for long by the industry insiders that IPL will bring respite to the broadcasters from tardy advertising revenues that they are dealing with since the onset of Covid-19 pandemic, in early March.

    The tournament will take place in UAE this year between September 19 and November and is touted to be the biggest Live Sports event this year. Undoubtedly, there is a lot of excitement about the property among consumers, broadcasters and brands.

    It has been widely reported that Star has set a target of Rs 3000 crore in advertising revenues for IPL this year.

    Media Ant co-founder Samir Chaudhary shares, the ad rates for Star Sports are pretty much the same as the last time, Rs 13-15 lakhs per 10 seconds but on Hotstar it has gone up from ‘120 CPM in last season to ‘180 CPM.

    Interestingly, the experts pointed that while the advertisers are happy to go ahead with this high impact property, they are also playing it safe when it comes to buying ad slots on Star Sports and Hotstar for the tournament. Unlike every year, brands are not flocking to buy package deals but are smartly investing in spot buying, a leading marketing expert tells us. He adds that this is also the reason that ad rates have been slightly up this year. 

    Several reports indicate that Star has already sold a large part of their ad inventory and the rest of the inventory will be sold close the bigger matches. A lot will also depend on the viewership numbers of the tournament. For the record, IPL has always been able to clock high viewership numbers. In 2019, the cricketing league clocked a viewership of 462 million.

    Media veteran Shripad Kulkarni notes, “For Star Sports, these are the rates that they have begun with but it is a very dynamic situation this time. It will all depend on demand and supply. Also, usually, they used to open the FCTs once the sponsors were finalised but they don’t have much time now, so all of this is running parallely. I am hoping for the sake of all us that there is a last-minute surge in the prices as many are looking at it as a point of revival.” 

    Interestingly, this year, IPL is coinciding with the festive season which is further helping its cause. Traditionally brands are keen to advertise during this season to reach out to their consumers who are in a good mood to purchase. Advertisers have a very small window and they prefer to go all in during this time. So, this year, it is expected that advertisers will be happy to pay a premium for IPL slots to reach out to their consumers.

    In a recent interaction with Indiantelevision.com CEO, founder, and editor-in-chief Anil Wanvari, Havas Media group MD India Mohit Joshi had noted that good 25-30 per cent of this year’s festive season spends will be taken by forthcoming the cricketing league, scheduled to happen between 19 September and 8 November.

    Another expert insisted that the market sentiments are fairly positive right now and a number of brands are in the process of buying ad slots. Though, he adds that the sponsorship rates are running about 25 per cent low this year. 

    The positive sentiment around the property was further enhanced with the announcement of Dream11 replacing Vivo as the title sponsor. The fantasy league brand bought the sponsorship right for Rs 222 crore.

    On the digital front, Disney + Hotstar will play a major role this year. Several industry experts have pointed that they are expecting good viewership on Hotstar and therefore the ad rates are slightly higher, maybe up to 50 per cent more than the last time.” It is expected that a lot of brands will be keen to experiment with IPL on the digital front.

    Surprisingly, Kulkarni is expecting a dip in the ad rates for Hotstar to the tune of 25-30 per cent from the last season. He also agrees that a lot is going to depend on demand and supply. The rates might be revised as the season progresses and viewership numbers are revealed. 

    In terms of the number of FCTs sold, all the media experts maintained that many brands, from the ed-tech, automobile, and FMCG categories, are in the discussion phase and confirmations will follow in the next two weeks. 

  • Star Sports launches new show ‘Cricket Connected: Chats’

    Star Sports launches new show ‘Cricket Connected: Chats’

    MUMBAI: Star Sports has introduced a brand-new show ‘Cricket Connected: Chats’ that will help fans catch-up with their favourite cricket stars during the week.

    In an extension to the Cricket Connected brand, the new series will see flagbearers of the sport delve further into how they fruitfully utilise their time during the lockdown and offer advice to cricketers on how to be mentally focused during Covid2019 times. The show will air on Star Sports 1 and Star Sports 1 Hindi from 13 May onwards.

    ‘Cricket Connected: Chats’ will kick-start with the ‘Hitman’ Rohit Sharma’s special interview on 13 May followed by the ‘God of Cricket’ Sachin Tendulkar and Team India captain Virat Kohli each featuring exclusively on May 14 – 15 May respectively.

    In the first episode of the series, Rohit Sharma talks about how he misses bowling. He said, “Since I injured my finger, I’m unable to grip the ball and I can’t bowl the way I used to. Wankhede’s pitch doesn’t give me a chance to bowl, so I stay away from it. In Tests, I try to bowl because that gives bowlers a break. To help the team, I mentally prepare myself to bowl 10 overs in a Test match.”

    In the second episode, Tendulkar doles out golden advice on how players can still use the lockdown to prepare themselves. He said, “I would tell all of them to recharge their batteries. They need to have a little time off as well. When you are playing every alternate day, it’s not so easy to stay on top of the game all the time. It is good to move away from cricket for a while, recharge your batteries. I’m seeing different kinds of training that players are doing on social media.”

    “In addition to that, as far as batting and bowling are concerned, there are physical drills and preparing yourself mentally that one needs to do. They also need to visualise how they can rectify what wrong they did in the past and how they can repeat the good they did. There have been many champions who didn’t have the best of everything, but they made the best of everything they had, so right now, we are in that situation," Tendulkar added. 

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