Hotstar, the digital streaming platform, has roped in Chinese handset maker Vivo and India's largest car manufacturer Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. (MSIL) as co-sponsors for live streaming the IPL 2017 matches.
The annual cricket carnival begins from April 5 and the first match will be played between Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). Sixty matches are going to be played in a span of 47 days, with the opening match and the finals scheduled to take place at Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad. The clincher will be played on May 21.
Viewers increasingly watching cricket on mobile has buoyed the spirits of Hotstar.
"We are reinventing the experience of cricket on a mobile and India is changing the way it watches its favourite sport. We believe that Hotstar will be the primary screen for Vivo IPL 2017 for the 130 million video streamers in the country," Ajit Mohan, CEO, Hotstar, told the exchange4media.
The expected viewership for the upcoming edition of the IPL marks a significant increase from 100 million in IPL 2016 and 41 million for IPL 2015, prompting Hotstar to eye advertisement revenues of more than Rs 200 crore this year in comparison to Rs 65 crore last year, according to the Mint.
Star India, which owns Hotstar, successfully won the bid for global Internet and mobile rights for a sum of Rs 302 crore, in February 2015. The bid is valid for three years, the Mint added.
Sony Pictures Networks India, which holds the television broadcast rights for IPL 2017, is also eyeing Rs 100 crore more in advertisements revenues this year as compared to Rs 1,200 crore it raked in last year. The channel has got nine sponsors, including Ceat Tyres, Yamaha Motors and Vimal Paan Masala, while Parle Agro's Frooti, Yes Bank and Polycab could also come on board.
"We are looking at a 10–12% revenue growth. We should touch Rs 1,300 crore. IPL has become a very big property," the Television Post quoted SPNI president Rohit Gupta, as saying.
