MUMBAI: Disney+ Hotstar, India’s leading premium streaming platform Tuesday announced fantasy sports platform Dream11 as the co-presenting sponsor of the upcoming 13th edition of the Indian Premier League, set to kick off in the UAE on September 19.
The platform has also onboarded 12 other key sponsors for 2020’s first big sporting extravaganza.
While Dream11 is Hotstar’s co-presenting sponsor, Boost has come on board as the co-powered by sponsor. The platform has managed to get 11 associate sponsors including Acko General Insurance, Maruti Suzuki, digital ledger app KhataBook, e-commerce firm Flipkart, online food ordering platform Swiggy, online rummy gaming platform Ace23, HDFC Bank, Great Learning, MX Player, Kingfisher Calendar and Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI).
The tournament, which also coincides with the festive season, has seen significant interest from brands across various categories to leverage the scale, reach and high visibility proposition that IPL will deliver during this time.
Nitin Bawankule, president, Ad Sales, Star & Disney India, said: “Dream11 IPL 2020 will be a major catalyst for viewers and fans, who are longing to see their favourite stars back on the field. We have created avenues for interactive advertising innovations which enable brands to engage with their audience more effectively. This has resulted in interest and investment from prestigious brands across categories as varied as auto to e-commerce to banking. All of this, coupled with enormous interest from viewers and fans, makes us confident that this year’s Dream11 IPL will be a resounding success.”
New video feature ‘Duets’
Disney+ Hotstar has also added new features to the interactive Watch’N Play social feed that allows a nationwide virtual community of cricket lovers to share excitement and support while watching the matches Live on the platform. Replicating the exhilarating roar of the stadium, fans will also be able to determine the mood of the nation using an interactive emoji stream. Cricket lovers will be able to join in the action by expressing themselves using ‘Hotshots’ selfies or a new video feature ‘Duets’ that lets fans create customised videos showcasing their rendition of famous shots and reactions of their favourite Dream11 IPL Heroes.
All Live matches will be exclusively available to new and existing subscribers of Disney+ Hotstar VIP (Rs 399 for 12 months) and Disney+ Hotstar Premium (Rs 1499 for 12 months).
