MUMBAI: Less than a week of BCCI coming out with the Invitation-To-Tender (ITT) to sell the media rights for Indian Premier League‘s (IPL) 2023-27 broadcast cycle, all the big players – TV18-Viacom , Disney, Sony, Zee, Amazon and another unnamed company – have bought the document.
BCCI sources on Monday told TOI, American tech giant Apple is also expected to pick the ITT next week.
The BCCI is expecting to raise revenues to the tune of US$7.2b when the e-auction for these media rights are held in the second week of June. The deadline to purchase the ITT ends on May 10 after which, the next 30 days will be spent in exchange of clarifications sought on the tender document.
“Transparency will be the key and the revenues coming from sale or rights will be directed to India’s domestic structure, better infrastructure and welfare of the cricketing fraternity,” BCCI secretary Jay Shah has said.
Four separate buckets
The rights will be sold in four separate buckets and the Board, for the first time, has said that it will not allow consortiums or consolidated bids (a sum of all parts) to be put in. Each bidding party, should it clear the eligibility criteria, will have to separately bid for each package.
The packages have been divided into the following categories: A) Television rights for India subcontinent; B) Digital rights; C) A cluster of 18 matches (season opener, four playoffs and evening matches of the double-headers on weekends); D) Rest of the world.
The overall base-price of the entire rights package has been kept at Rs 32,890 crore. The final figure has been arrived at after BCCI kept the per-match base price of television rights at Rs 49 crore, digital rights at Rs 33 crore, 18-match cluster at Rs 16 crore and rest of the world rights at Rs 3 crore.
At 74 matches per season – which amounts to 370 matches over a period of five year s – the total base per-game base price multiplied by the number of matches during the rights cycle totals to the above-mentioned figure of Rs 32,890crore. The BCCI has capped the matches at 74 per season right now but if matches increase in the coming seasons, broadcaster will have to pay pro-rata going forward.
Packages for sale
Sale of packages A & B will happen simultaneously on Day 1 of the e-auction while the e-auction for packages C & D will happen the following day.
However, winner of Package ‘A’ will have the right to rebid for Package ‘B’ and the winner of Package ‘B’ will have the right to rebid for Package ‘C’ – thus giving the winner of Packages A or B, or both, to pay a delta and grab the 18-match cluster.
What this also means is, winner of Package A has the option to challenge the highest bidder of Package B for a Knock-out auction. Similarly, Winner of Package B has such option to challenge the highest bidder of Package C and highest bidders of each territory grouping in Package D.
“The packages have been divided in a manner where it ensures maximum participation. This will keep the competition intense, transparent and allow BCCI to maximise its revenue potential to the fullest,” BCCI treasurer Arun Dhumal said.
Package A can only be bid by an Indian broadcaster having a net-worth greater than INR 1,000 crore as on March 31, 2021. Bidders for Packages B, C & D need to have a minimum net worth of INR 500 crore. An India broadcaster, an India internet operator and an India mobile company alone can bid for Package B.
All of the above, along with an international broadcaster, an international internet operator and an international mobile company can bid for Package C & D.
