Women’s IPL media rights not only fetched a sizable price, they likely set the roadmap for future broadcasting deals. In the future, bidding may apply primarily to digital rights, while bidding for linear rights will be of secondary importance. Not long ago, the situation was reversed, and TV rights became more important.
If anything, the bidding pattern for WIPL media rights has been just that: Disney Star and Viacom 18 were her only two active bidders. Neither company competed for global television rights (Package A). Star only bid for Global Digital Rights (Package B), while Viacom competed for Package B and Package C and won. This was a combined bid for global television and digital rights.
For comparison, Viacom’s winning performance was digital and linear at 70.
This makes the WIPL the third-largest women’s league behind the WNBA in the US and the Women’s Super League in the UK even before it officially launched. A woman’s PGA rights may be worth more, but it’s an individual sport.
It was clear that both Disney stars and Viacom 18 were unwilling to give up their digital rights, given the declining business acumen of TV rights these days. With the rapid adoption of smart TVs, viewers are also expected to prefer digital content on their TV screens.
A potential third party – Sony – did not show up for the tender. The company, which has struggled to merge with Zee, didn’t want to be just a successor, he said. As reported on Sunday (January 15th), winning the rights required either a strategic bid or a major leap of confidence. The Viacom 18 did just that. Sony, which did the same thing at its IPL in 2008, wasn’t prepared to do so this time. All of its key bosses were in Los Angeles, and there was no green light from headquarters to employees in Mumbai to participate in the auction.
It is also essential for winning broadcasters to build their lots in an attractive way. Sony raised the IPL level during his first decade, but now he has no IPL. She doesn’t want to spend her money and energy on real estate that is considered IPL’s sister company, both literally and figuratively. Both Viacom and Star have her IPL, so their attendance was understandable. A total of Rs 7.09 crore per game will be a godsend for the Indian Cricket Control Board (BCCI) as it will attract more participants and higher earnings from the team auction. The team is worth more than expected, initially at least Rs 300 crore, and the value could well exceed that figure. It was very thoughtful of BCCI not to set a base price for the team auction. January 25th is another big payday.
The team will initially receive a media rights value of at least Rs 2.5 crore (80:
20 ratio) and you can earn up to 30 kroner per season. This will cover most of your annual franchise fees. However, just like in the IPL, teams face losses early on due to other liabilities such as player fees, support his staff salaries and other operating costs. About 29 companies, including all 10 IPL franchises, employ his ITT in his team’s auctions, with prices determined based on how willing the parties are to take on initial losses.
And what about BCCI? The BCCI Lexicon has no losses in this cricket business. For them, every day is payday.