IPL bowls out malls, box office in viewership

MUMBAI: Nobody expected over 200-million Indian television viewers, 10-million international viewers and 4-million live spectators day after day at the great Indian cricket tamasha called the Indian Premier League (IPL).

There is no doubt that cricket���s new-found avatar has delivered on almost all facets proving its numerous sceptics wrong.

Be it viewership, advertising revenue, ticket sales or just plain simple nail-biting cricket, IPL has exceeded all expectations.

However, given its unprecedented success, will IPL attain the status of international football leagues? That remains to be seen. Cricket has always been the staple sport in India. But IPL has conquered new frontiers.

The T20 city-centric cricket league has gone on to become the mainstream entertainment option in the summer of 2008. So much so that the impact of IPL was felt at the box office, TV channels, malls and by tour operators.

To BCCI���s credit, they got the formula right: tightly packed match that runs for the same duration as a film that was carved into the prime-time slot merged with celebrities and business tycoons, giving cricket a unique flavour.

IPL chairman and commissioner Lalit Modi has emerged as the man of the match, recent controversies stemming from alleged illegal activities during his student days in the US notwithstanding.

Looking at the tangibles, the BCCI created history when it sold TV rights of the untested format to Sony-World Sports consortium for $918 million.

According to projections made by IIFL-India Infoline, BCCI will earn over Rs 43 billion (Rs 4,300 crore) over 10 years, becoming one of the biggest beneficiary of the IPL, with a fixed yearly inflow from broadcasting rights, franchise fees and central sponsorships.

Going forward, the BCCI will not have to deal with escalating cost pressures, whether it be players��� salaries or stadium leasing expenses.

The first-year operating profit for BCCI, just via IPL, is estimated at Rs 350 crore. Revenues through broadcasting fees, franchise fees and central sponsorships are estimated at Rs 375 crore.

The outflow for BCCI has been about Rs 25 crore, which includes umpire and official costs and prize money. The IPL has almost doubled BCCI���s revenue, which is only slated to go up in the years to come with increasing media rights cost, sponsorship money and expansion plan.

IPL has achieved a record TV viewership and ground attendance. One of the key areas of concern for IPL was whether the first season would manage to sustain TV ratings, post its novelty wearing of IPL, which began its innings with a rating of 8.2 saw it average at 5 throughout the series, sustaining itself at the top show on Indian TVs across 44 days.

IPL has gone on to become one of the most expensive properties to advertise on reaching new heights of Rs 1 million for 10 seconds.