In a massive news for the cricket- and IPL-loving fans in India, it has been reported that telecom giant Jio will Live stream the IPL 2023 matches in the country for FREE!
According to a recent report in exchange4media.com, Sports18, the digital rights holder of the IPL 2023, has decided to air IPL free on the Jio app.
The company aims to have over 500 million viewers at the IPL 2023
“As part of its strategy to take TV head-on, the app is expected to sell its inventory, not only on impressions but also as 10-second slots, exactly like how it is sold on TV,” the report said.
“Sources in the industry claimed the pitch by Sports18 is concentrated around four points.”
The IPL 2023 matches will be available in 11 regional languages, including Bhojpuri, Tamil and Bengali.
It has also been learned that Sports18 will marginally decrease its subscription rate to have more users buying its product.
”They are playing on reach and mass. They claim to reach 500+ million subscribers and no match is behind any paywall. They want to connect with newer advertisers who have always aspired to be associated with IPL but did not have the means. Also, the legacy brands will nevertheless continue their association,” said a senior media planner.
Another senior media expert added: “They may just start with a lower slab and later increase the rates depending upon the response they may get going forward. It’s always smart to play the mass game.”
“Most people, particularly in the cities, have smart TVs and may prefer installing the Jio app over investing in a package. Hence, this will bring you IPL for free on your big screen as well,” the expert asserted.
Last year, Viacom18 (Sports18) announced themselves as a big player in the media market by bagging the IPL digital rights from 2023 to 2027 for the Indian subcontinent for a whopping sum of INR 20,500 crore, which amounts to INR 50 crore per match.
“They have a huge sum to recover and so they are looking at different possible ways to sell their game. Being the debutant in the domain they want to play safe yet aggressive,” said another senior industry expert.
