The Indian Premier League (IPL) is no stranger to breaking records, whether it is on the field or off it. In line with that trend, this season too has been setting new viewership benchmarks. Disney Star recently said that 520 million viewers tuned in to watch the first 59 games of the tournament. The data shared by the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) revealed that the cumulative watch time for IPL this year was 18% higher than the 2023 edition, and has surpassed seven of the eight previous editions as measured by BARC. And we’re still a week away from the finals on May 26.
The IPL is breaking records not just on TV but also on digital. Although official IPL streamer JioCinema hasn’t shared any fresh data during the tournament, industry observers state that the viewership on digital has been growing too, boosted by the platform’s decision to keep the tournament free. As per reports, JioCinema saw nearly 200 million viewers in the first six games of the league alone.
Experts believe that ad spending is likely to grow by at least 20% over last year across digital and TV.
Last year, the total ad revenue during the IPL was estimated to be over Rs 4,000 crore, of which Rs 2,500 crore was TV’s share. Digital is likely to grow at a higher rate this season than TV with the IPL being offered free on JioCinema for a second consecutive year, says Karan Taurani, senior VP at Elara Capital. The share of TV and digital will be more or less equal. Last year, TV’s share was 55% and in 2022, it was 70%.
The massive growth in viewership this season has encouraged more advertisers to bat this season, says Andre Augustine, chief of staff at ITW Universe, attributing the growing interest and viewership to the compelling cricketing action on the field this season.
“Viewership on linear TV for the tournament has been boosted by record breaking events and incredible performances like Sunrisers Hyderabad posting huge scores, or two close encounters involving 200 run chases. For OTT, which offers brands more targeted advertising options, we are still seeing a lot of advertiser interest with brands like Poker Baazi, which just announced an associate sponsorship deal with JioCinema,” notes Augustine. Back in March, the platform announced a total of 18 sponsors.
Augustine expects to get a more realistic comparison by the end of this season, noting that the IPL this year is well on course to cross last year’s ad spending.
Scoring on IPL
As per data from TAM Sports, advertising on TV saw a 15% growth in ad volumes per channel in the first 48 matches, compared with last year. The number of categories has crossed 60 compared with around 40 last year, and there are 75 TV advertisers on IPL compared with 55 last year.
Despite the growing advertiser interest, ad rates on TV and digital have not seen a substantial hike.
“Advertiser spending this IPL has been far better than 2023. Aside from new brands getting on board, some advertisers have also upped their spending and have started buying more inventory midway through the season. The BARC data, which shows impressive viewership on TV this year, has encouraged more brands to spend on TV,” says Hema Malik, chief investment officer at IPG Mediabrands India.
Given the surging number of brands advertising on IPL, should advertisers be concerned about the clutter and possible wastage of advertising dollars? “The clutter during IPL is much less compared with the number of advertisers on general entertainment channels. IPL is an expensive platform but it has consistently delivered on brand and business metrics,” says Malik.
The other concern has been the disappointing performance from fan favourites Mumbai Indians this season, but experts argue that this has not been a major deterrent for advertisers. Jigar Rambhia, who leads the sports practice at Omnicom Media Group, notes that the passion for cricket in India transcends individual team performances. “While there may be a marginal impact on ratings when high-profile teams underperform, the enduring allure of IPL ensures that brands still derive significant value from their partnerships,” says Rambhia.
ITW Universe’s Augustine however cautions that the league should guard against both the action and the packaging of the programme becoming unidimensional, which may lead to flagging viewer interest. Though this season has seen some thrilling T20 action, he suggests that the IPL consider introducing innovations in its format in future seasons to sustain viewership and advertiser interest.