YOU CAN can guarantee that the IPL will find new ways of making money, and you have to admire the money making zeal behind it, but I’m far from convinced about the big screen adverts being run in between balls from the ground. Brilliant exposure for the advertiser, no doubt, but I’m old fashioned enough to have the attention span to enjoy three minutes of uninterrupted cricket.
We’ve been going through a series of contracts this month for various territories of the world and various sporting product where rights holders and sporting bodies basically block logos appearing on screen, or commercial scrolls appearing on screen, or limit squeeze backs. The federations are protecting the image of their sport, the primacy of the action over the commercial content. The IPL appears uniquely dedicated to finding as many ways as possible of including commercial content during the live game.
The huge increase in visibility for the IPL in the UK with its new broadcast deal on ITV 4 has led to series of mails from friends at home who have been able to see the showpiece for the first time in full. There is a genuine amazement at the “DLF maximums” and the way that apparently reputable commentators turn into used car salesmen. To be fair, even breaks after every over are a bit of a shock to an English audience, but the IPL definitely takes things to a different level.
And yet, when you’ve got the IPL, you seem to be able to re-write the rule book on a daily basis. Healthy ratings on all sorts of different media disprove the argument that the commercial content frightens off viewership. The franchise fees for Pune and Kochi are another remarkable achievement for the league organisers. Is there nothing that can stop the juggernaut?
In many ways you can see the IPL as the continuation of a world trend into the Indian market. In England the Premier League dominates the top 20 sporting ratings for the year. The same is true of the NFL in the States or the AFL in Australia. The IPL is that content for the Indian market.
While previously you could see a balance between the various sporting properties shared between broadcasters, now the IPL has achieved a dramatic daily dominance for its duration in India. Thank goodness they allow us other broadcasters 10 and a half months of the year without the competition.
There is of course a difference between the IPL and the other sporting bodies. The IPL is a toddler amongst these sporting giants, and still needs nursing through its growth period. I’m still not convinced that mid over ad breaks are the best way to bring up this particular small child, but maybe I’m just getting old.
The author is COO, Taj Television Ltd.
