Here is everything you need to know about the 2022 IPL Media Rights Auction
The Indian Premier League’s media rights auction for the upcoming five-year cycle (2023-27) got underway on Sunday, 12th June. The IPL earned a whopping Rs 16,347 crores for its media rights in the previous cycle (2017-22) won by Star India, and following the opening day of bidding on Sunday, the total value of the next media rights cycle is an eye-watering sum of Rs. 43,050 crores.
All you need to know about the IPL Media Rights Auction.
Opposed to a close auction last time out in 2017, the BCCI is conducting an e-auction for this year’s media rights sale. The bidding started on Sunday and could go on for multiple days, with no deadline given by the BCCI.
The media rights for the upcoming cycle have been divided into four packages, to be sold separately.
Package A: Indian Subcontinent TV Rights
Package B: Indian Subcontinent Digital Rights
Package C: Indian region 18-game non-exclusive package
Package D: Rest of the World (TV and Digital)
Package C is a digital-only package that will include 18 important IPL matches (weekend games, playoffs, and final). Package C undermines the exclusivity of Package A and B but was introduced by the BCCI so that the IPL can have more broadcasting partners.
The main four contenders interested in securing the media rights are Viacom-Reliance, Disney (Star), Sony and Zee. Other bidders include Instances Web, FunAsia, Times Internet, and FanCode for the digital rights, Sky Sports activities and SuperSport for the Rest of the World rights.
Amazon pulled out of the media rights race in the lead-up to the auction.
In each category, potential bidders will bid on how much they wish to pay for each match. Bidding will continue until all competitors have dropped out and there is only one winner.
The base price for each of the packages was as follows.
Package A: Rs. 49 crores per match
Package B: Rs. 33 crores per match
Package C: Rs. 16 crores per match
Package D: Rs. 3 crore per match
After Sunday’s round of bidding the price of the TV rights (Package A) has risen to Rs. 57 crore per match, while the digital rights (Package B) have shot up to Rs. 48 crore per match. Bidding for packages C and D has not yet started.
While the final numbers are far from being decided, the expected results from the IPL media rights sale confirm the IPL’s status as one of the most valuable sporting properties in world sport. As of Sunday, the per-game broadcasting fees of an IPL match is Rs. 105 crores, making it the second most valuable sports league in the world after the NFL.
The other major learning from Sunday’s round of bidding is that the future is digital. From a base price of Rs. 33 crore per game, the rights shot up to Rs. 48 crore per game, and there is a possibility that the cost of the digital package could overtake the TV rights amount.
Shivaan Shah