Broadcaster Disney Star is pulling out all the stops to maximise revenues from the two upcoming cricketing events — the Asia Cup co-hosted by Pakistan and Sri Lanka (August 30 to September 17), and the 2023 ICC Men’s World Cup, which India will host from October 5. Although the absence of big spending startups could pose a challenge, Ajit Varghese, head of network ad sales, asserts that there is a lot of interest already from segments such as auto, FMCG, real estate and infrastructure.
During the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, as per reports, Star is said to have earned an estimated Rs 1,800 crore in ad revenues and in the T20 World Cup last year, revenues were around Rs 1,200 crore. Industry experts note that cricket TVRs have grown by over 30% in the past 8-9 months, and so the ad revenues will be higher — to the tune of Rs 2,000-2,500 crore for the two events combined.
Given that the cricket action coincides with the festive season, Disney Star is promising a reach of over 800 million across TV and digital. The two tournaments could also help Disney+ Hotstar retain its leadership position in the streaming and SVOD business, in which it has faced fierce competition from JioCinema.
Earlier this year, the company announced that it would stream both tournaments free on Disney+ Hotstar, like JioCinema did with the IPL. The move will help the platform grow its user base and viewership on mobile. “Our attractive pricing will encourage first-time advertisers and non-traditional advertisers to also advertise with us,” says Varghese.
As per agency sources, 10-second spots during the Asia Cup are being sold at around Rs 22-25 lakh for India-Pakistan games, while non-India games are being sold at Rs 2 to 3 lakh per ten seconds. Other India games are priced at Rs 15 lakh, though the price may expectedly be higher for the semi-finals and finals.
Sources say ad rates for the World Cup early birds are as low as Rs 60 to 70 CPM (cost per mille). While Varghese declined to comment on the rates, he says there are enough options for advertisers across the spectrum, from those with small budgets (Rs 2 lakh and above) to those with big budgets – over Rs 100 crore.