IPL 2018: Star Sports Network targets huge numbers

The Indian Premier League(IPL) is one of the most widely followed cricket leagues in the world. Although there were several controversies involved in the IPL, not even one was able to disrupt its fan base. Also, CSK and RR will make a comeback into the league with this season. A mega-auction will be taking place this season increasing expectations among fans.

This season will also see a new television broadcaster. Sony Network, which shouldered the responsibilities of broadcasting the event for 10 long years is out of the race now. The ‘Extraaa Innings T20’ has been a show stealer and fan’s favourite ever since IPL’s inception. Indian fans will now miss this iconic show that was earlier broadcasted by the Sony Network.

Cometh a new season, cometh a new broadcaster

Earlier, Star Sports bagged the IPL media rights, in a blockbuster deal. Star Sports shelled out Rs 16,347.5 crore for IPL media rights over the next five years (2018-2022). They also own the digital media rights for the tournament.

To make the 11th edition of IPL unique, Star is set to bring in some drastic changes to the broadcasting style. It has already telecast the retention event live for the first time ever. The event was watched by over 8 million viewers both across the television and digital media platforms. Virtual Reality(VR) feature will also debut in IPL this season. It will cost Star India a massive 8.47 million dollars per each game.

Star India looks to make big profits

Having invested such a hefty amount in the league, Star India is looking to make huge profits out of the tournament. Star India targets 700 million viewers this year. They will also telecast the event in six different languages. These languages will include Kannada, Tamil, Telugu and Bengali besides the regular Hindi and English.

Star India MD Sanjay Gupta said that the language has been a huge barrier for the IPL. He spoke to Business World while talking about this revolutionary approach for the next 5 years. He also opined that revenues will come but the focus on revenues will only be after the first year. Gupta also said that this was the biggest investment they ever made in terms of technology. Gupta further added that this would be a big platform for brands to advertise. He said that this was a great way for Star India pave way for future monetization. He hoped that IPL will reach much greater heights with the help of Star Sports.

“This will also be one of the first few leagues in the world to bring live virtual reality from the stadium to our homes. This re-imagination is not limited to what we do on TV but this year even Hotstar will go from solo to social with technology drive the fan experience,” Sanjay Gupta quoted.

Keep following CricTracker to get more latest updates on IPL and other cricketing news around the world!