BCCI to charge more from digital platforms than TV for cricket matches telecast

livemint.com:

OTT platforms, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) set a higher base price for digital rights compared with TV. It has also reduced the overall base price to ₹45 crore per match for upcoming media rights cycle. The base price stood at ₹61 crore per match for Disney star paid in the recent cycle.

Till now, the base price for digital rights was never more than TV rights. The BCCI reduced the collective base price (TV+Digital) to as low as ₹45 crore per match for all formats of international cricket India will play at hme in the coming five years, as per the e-auction tender released by the BCCI on Wednesday. This time, the BCCI gave up consolidated bidding and chose to sell digital and TV rights separately.

Last time, the category saw only three participants competing for the rights, ie Disney Star, Sony and Reliance. “One simple reason why the auction document is structured this way may be to ensure Viacom 18 does not run away with a comfortable winning consolidated bid," a leading industry voice told Hindustan Times. In the auction, BCCI is offering 88 cricket matches.

Out of them, 25 are tests, 27 ODI, and 36 T20Is in the current cycle of five years. There has been a reduction by 14 matches in this auction cycle. Five-Test series against England and Australia have now turned into a regular feature.