IPL 5: Media says it's still a brand par excellence

BestMediaInfo speaks to industry veterans Sam Balsara, Shashi Sinha and Shubha George on whether brand IPL has lost some sheen. The answer is an emphatic 'no', but pricing may be an issue

Ananya Saha | Delhi | June 5, 2012

IPL 5 gained as much from controversies as it did from its sponsors and advertisers. Without a doubt it is a mega brand today, a global one at that, but has it really grown over the last five years? According to the average television ratings for 68 games, IPL 5 showed stability as the tournament reached the final stages. In the TG 4+ years across all-India, the average rating was recorded at 3.27 TVR for 68 games in IPL 5 against 3.39 TVR in IPL 4 for 69 games, even as the number of matches was below 60 in the previous seasons of IPL. The cumulative reach after 68 games for IPL 5 was 159 million (among CS 4+, SEC ABC across all-India) against 160.9 million for 69 games in IPL 4.

Sam Balsara, Chairman, Madison World, is of the opinion that IPL is here to stay. “It occupies a premier and desirable position, even though the ratings witnessed a declining trend and season 5 has garnered the lowest ratings,” he said.

Shashi Sinha, CEO, Lodestar UM, argues that it is a property that has stabilised. “I see a lot of people in India responding only in extremes: either writing IPL completely off or simply praising it. What I would like to believe is that IPL is now a property that has stabilised. There might be minor variations in season to season, but it is a top-selling property. What everyone is looking at is the ratings, while forgetting the reach. Even if you look at the numbers, IPL did pretty well compared to even Satyamev Jayate,” he said.

Shubha George, COO, South Asia, MEC said, “Any tournament, as it matures, sees a stabilisation of ratings. I am not surprised at this year's viewership levels. In fact, the ratings match our pre-tournament estimation perfectly.”

The 5^th season, apart from falling ratings, also saw unsold inventories. Despite of marginal difference in the ratings compared to last season which may not be a big issue of concern, there was substantial unsold inventories this year. The matches were almost filled with broadcaster's promos initially. The media veterans argue that due to a soft economy and lesser launches this year, ad inventories did face a bit of challenge.

George said, “I don't think the problem is in the viewership or advertiser interest in the tournament. The real issue is the pricing. The broadcaster, perhaps in hindsight, out-priced the tournament. At the right price, advertisers will buy as there is no annual TV property that consistently delivers like the IPL.”

“I personally feel that the IPL property will stabilise, depending on the economic climate. It was a high-rated property for seven weeks,” said an optimistic Sinha.

But they are unanimous that the brand value of IPL has not been eroded. Balsara pointed out, “Brand value of IPL as a whole has not come down, given the exciting matches, viewer interest and the buzz it created judging from the number of times it featured on the front pages of newspapers.”

Balsara also maintained that the next season for brand IPL and the broadcaster would depend on the overall economic and media environment.

But George was more cautious, and hinted at the need for a review of pricing. She said, “It is too early to predict the next season for IPL. It will depend on what transpires in the next 12 months in both Indian cricket as well as Indian television. For the broadcaster, perhaps a relook at pricing along with balancing inventory levels may be the way to go to realise the true value of the tournament.”

Balsara agrees. “The viewership has stabilised after the initial euphoria and to fill inventory the channel needs to adjust the rate per 10 seconds,” he said.

Mired with controversies and hopes, IPL still manages to garner favourable and hearty response from the industry. If this is not a good sign, what can be? After all, they take the final call on where to put the clients' money.

Ananya@BestMediaInfo.com

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