Viacom18 captures digital rights to Indian Premier League cricket for $ 2.6 billion; The Disney star loses but keeps broadcasting

Viacom18 defeated the opposition and seized the rights required to broadcast the Indian Premier League cricket tournament.

According to The Times of India, the company paid a whopping 205 billion rupees ($ 2.6 billion) for digital rights over the next five years.

As competitive in the broadcasting market as India, the online IPL agreement will directly target the businesses of Paramount Global, Reliance Industries and Bodhi Tree Systems, attracting many new customers to its services.

Meanwhile, Disney-owned Star India retained its television broadcasting rights, paying a whopping 236 billion rupees ($ 3 billion) for the privilege. The company previously owned the streaming rights, which was seen as a driving factor for Disney + Hotstar to become the biggest player in the Indian market. The loss of online rights is a blow, but Disney considers the costs too high, having paid significantly less in 2017, both on TV and online.

The deals showed the combined value of the rights from the Indian subcontinent at $ 5.6 billion for the 410 games normally held in April and May.

The auction is still ongoing and the digital and TV rights of the tournament and some non-exclusive matches for sale outside India are on sale. The deals are expected to start on Tuesday and will be followed by official announcements.

Cricket is India’s national entertainment and attracts millions of spectators to matches. Famous players can match the star power of Bollywood’s biggest names, and the conversation surrounding the IPL auction has steadily become a major news event.

Amazon had an offer to make, but last week decided to turn it down, leaving many Sony Corp favorites. However, Viacom18 has been released and will now definitely see an increase in subscribers.