- With
Disney Star andMukesh Ambani ’s Viacom18 bagging the television and digital rights respectively for the Indian subcontinent, there's an intense war for Package C. - Package C has been introduced for the first time. It is a special bundle of 18 non-exclusive matches per season.
- The non-exclusive digital rights of 18 matches saw value touching ₹1,700 crore on day two of bidding. The base price for bundle C is ₹1,568 crore.
Up for grabs today are two bundles – packages C and D – which are comparatively much smaller than the primary packages A and B.
Package C has been introduced for the first time. It is a special bundle of 18 non-exclusive matches per season.
Package D includes rights for international markets, both TV and digital, and has a $4 value of ₹3 crore.
Ambani’s Viacom18 expected to go all-in
On day two of the media auction, package C saw its $4 touching ₹1,700 crore. The bundle includes the opening game, three playoffs, the grand final of every season and a few weekend double headers.
The base price for bundle C is ₹1,568 crore and it has already touched ₹2,400 crore $4 today. The winner of package B can challenge package C with a higher bid.
"It has 98 games for five years in a non-exclusive digital category. There are 18 in the first two seasons followed by 20 in next two and 24 in the final season," a BCCI functionary told PTI.
What is the significance of package C for Viacom18?
As per media reports, there has been an aggressive war between Viacom18 and Disney Star for package C.
If a different media conglomerate bags package C, they will be buying the rights to air 18 matches for free. Such a scenario would hurt Viacom18 as it has paid around ₹50 crore to stream a single game.
Ambani’s Viacom18 would lose out on revenue from brand advertisements and subscriptions as price-conscious cricket lovers with busy schedules might prefer to match the most important games for a smaller amount of money.
Viacom18, therefore, is reportedly going in all guns blazing today to buy one more package and kill the competition.