Sports broadcasting in India is set to clock a revenue of `9,530 crore in FY22, with `7,560 crore from TV and `1,970 crore from OTT, according to a report by KPMG in collaboration with Confederation of Indian Industry and Indian Broadcasting and Digital Foundation. The overall revenue is expected to reach `14,190 crore in FY26 at a CAGR of 10%.
The report added that TV sports viewership in India stood at 722 million in the first nine months of 2022, the highest among all genres, and is estimated to surpass pre-pandemic numbers (776 million viewership in 2019) soon.
While the digital revenue for the sports segment is estimated to grow from `1,540 crore in FY21 to `4,360 crore in FY26, at a CAGR of 22%, the TV sports segment is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 7%, from `7,050 crore in FY21 to ` 9,830 crore in FY26.
TV, thus, continues to remain the goliath, the report stated, adding, “TV reached 210 million households in 2020, as per the Broadcast Audience Research Council TV universe estimates, translating into 900 million individuals who watch it. This user base far exceeds any other media platform in the country.”
Sports contributed 3% to the total viewing compared to developed countries such as the US, where the number is closer to 10%, the report stated. Still, viewership of several sports programmes on TV such as the Indian Premier League in 2022 (400 million), Pro Kabaddi League season 8 (227 million) and Indian Super League 2021-2022 (130 million) was significantly higher than full seasons of some of the highest-impact GEC properties such as Kaun Banega Crorepati 2021, Bigg Boss 2020-2021, and The Kapil Sharma Show 2020-2021.
The latest IPL season was viewed for over a whopping 330 billion minutes, which was 80% higher than the combined reach of KBC, Big Boss, The Kapil Sharma Show, Khatron Ke Khiladi and Shark Tank, the report pointed out.
In fact, the report said the IPL was the “largest impact sports property” on TV.
A staggering 16,217 hours of live cricket were broadcasted until week 44 of 2022, it added.The sporting segment was also one of the most resilient in the face of Covid headwinds, the report stated. “(The segment) saw a y-o-y decline of only 9% in 2020 versus 2019, compared to a decline of 28% in Hindi GEC and 20-31% in regional GEC,” it said.These numbers indicate that sports on TV have become an extremely important cog in firms’ brand-building wheel, experts said. Corporates are also increasing their involvement in sports beyond advertising and are participating as franchise owners and/or engaging in grassroots development programmes.
“No other platform or content genre offers this rare combination of virtues, which beyond attracting 550+ million viewers, also serve as the ideal vehicle for brands trying to reach and engage consumers,” said Sanjog Gupta, CEO-sports, Disney Star.
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