Indian Premier League
Project IPL
A revolution in Indian Sports & Entertainment
27 May 2008
Indian Premier League (IPL)
A revolution in Indian sports and entertainment
Over 200 million Indian viewers, 10 million international viewers, 4 million live spectators: the Indian Premier League (IPL) is a sports and entertainment revolution in the making, surpassing all records of viewership on ground and on media. Advertising revenue and ticket sales have exceeded all expectations, making IPL highly profitable for the organisers, broadcasters and successful team owners. Zealous fan following—even hostility for visiting teams—shows local loyalties are building up faster than anyone expected. As we enter the last phase of the first edition of IPL, numerous new opportunities for sports and business have opened up in India. IPL will mature over the next few years to gain a status that could match or even exceed international football leagues. IPL has been a huge success in its first year: IPL, a T20 cricket league consisting of city teams, has proved to be a runaway success in its very first edition, by positioning cricket as a mainstream entertainment option. It has captured the imagination of the nation, with the media creating dedicated segments to cover the event on TV and print. A typical T20 match is roughly as long as a typical Hindi movie. The match timings are tuned to prime-time television slots. The presence of celebrities from the world of entertainment and business and the picking up of local team loyalties has given further momentum to IPL. IPL has achieved record TV viewership and ground attendance: IPL has been able to sustain a TRP rating of around 5 throughout the first 50 matches, which is the highest amongst all television programmes currently running in India. It has thus achieved very high rates for advertisement, with 10-second advertising slots during the finals being sold for a reported price of Rs1m. The next edition of IPL is likely to fetch Rs6.5bn in advertising
A revolution in Indian Sports & Entertainment
27 May 2008
Indian Premier League (IPL)
A revolution in Indian sports and entertainment
Over 200 million Indian viewers, 10 million international viewers, 4 million live spectators: the Indian Premier League (IPL) is a sports and entertainment revolution in the making, surpassing all records of viewership on ground and on media. Advertising revenue and ticket sales have exceeded all expectations, making IPL highly profitable for the organisers, broadcasters and successful team owners. Zealous fan following—even hostility for visiting teams—shows local loyalties are building up faster than anyone expected. As we enter the last phase of the first edition of IPL, numerous new opportunities for sports and business have opened up in India. IPL will mature over the next few years to gain a status that could match or even exceed international football leagues. IPL has been a huge success in its first year: IPL, a T20 cricket league consisting of city teams, has proved to be a runaway success in its very first edition, by positioning cricket as a mainstream entertainment option. It has captured the imagination of the nation, with the media creating dedicated segments to cover the event on TV and print. A typical T20 match is roughly as long as a typical Hindi movie. The match timings are tuned to prime-time television slots. The presence of celebrities from the world of entertainment and business and the picking up of local team loyalties has given further momentum to IPL. IPL has achieved record TV viewership and ground attendance: IPL has been able to sustain a TRP rating of around 5 throughout the first 50 matches, which is the highest amongst all television programmes currently running in India. It has thus achieved very high rates for advertisement, with 10-second advertising slots during the finals being sold for a reported price of Rs1m. The next edition of IPL is likely to fetch Rs6.5bn in advertising