We made disciplined bids with focus on long-term value for IPL media rights: Rebecca Campbell of The Walt Disney Company

Disney Star has secured the exclusive television rights package for the 2023-2027 Indian Premier League seasons for Rs 23,575 crore, at the rate of Rs 57.5 crore per game.

Rebecca Campbell, Chairman, International Content and Operations, The Walt Disney Company, said, “We made disciplined bids with a focus on long-term value. We chose not to proceed with the digital rights given the price required to secure that package.” 

For the five upcoming IPL seasons, Reliance-backed Viacom18 bagged digital rights for Rs 23,758 crore.

Previously, Star India had bought the TV broadcast and digital streaming rights for 2018-22 at Rs 16, 347 crore (Rs 54 crore per match).

Campbell further said, “IPL is an important component of our portfolio of television channels in India, providing an incredible opportunity for us to showcase The Walt Disney Company’s powerful global brands and iconic storytelling, as well as Disney Star’s impressive collection of local original content, to millions of viewers in India.”

Currently, Star India holds ProKabaddi League rights, India Super League football rights, as well as various international sports rights, including the Wimbledon Championships and the English Premier League.

“Disney star will also be exploring other multiplatform cricket rights, including future rights for the International Cricket Council (ICC) and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which the media conglomerate currently holds through the 2023 and 2024 seasons, respectively,” added Campbell. 

Other than sports, Campbell said that Disney star is equally focused on growing its robust slate of original entertainment content for Disney+ Hotstar and television channels in the region.

Disney Star’s estimated overall revenue from IPL in 2022 was around Rs 5,500 crore. This includes advertising, distribution, digital subscriptions and revenues from international distribution. 

Excluding the digital revenues of roughly Rs 1,100-1,200 crore and international distribution revenues of Rs 200-300 crore, the overall India TV revenue from IPL for Disney Star was around Rs 4,000-4,100 crore, which included income from advertising and distribution.

Going by this Rs 4,000 crore figure, Disney Star earned around Rs 54 crore per match from broadcast in 2022.

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