Paris Olympics: More advertisers to enter the ring looking at India’s performance

New Delhi: India’s performance at the Paris Olympics 2024 will be crucial for the advertisers to enter the ring who are otherwise sitting on the fence as yet, said top advertising executives. 

“The majority of the viewership comes around events that are India-specific such as a hockey match between India and Pakistan. Most corporates are waiting and watching before they open their purses. Other than brands that are sponsoring athletes and collaborating with the Indian Olympic Association as partners, most brands are engaging audiences with spot-buying,” a marketing leader told BestMediInfo.com.

“Because of limited audience interest in non-cricketing events, brands are planning to wait for India’s performance during the first three days before they open their wallets,” added the marketing leader.

Viacom18, having secured the media rights for the 2024 Olympics, will broadcast the event on Sports18 and stream it on JioCinema for free starting July 26. 

Additionally, Viacom18 is offering around 20 specialised feeds, such as a curated India-specific feed, a world feed, a women-centric feed, and a sport category-wise feed. Advertisers can target specific audience segments during key events.

BestMediaInfo.com had reported that the advertisers will have to spend between Rs 1.5 and Rs 1.65 lakh for a ten-second ad.

JioCinema is selling CTV ads on an FCT basis, ranging between Rs 90,000 - 1,25,000 per ten seconds. For mobile advertising on the 2024 Olympic Games, JioCinema is asking for Rs 250 - 275 per CPM.

Sources told BestMediaInfo.com that the cost for an associate partner for the games ranges between Rs 12 - 15 crore, while the cost for co-representing begins at Rs 18 crore and may go up to Rs 22 crore.

A few advertisers BestMediaInfo.com spoke to are also evaluating DD Sports as an alternative to advertising to JioCinema and Sports18 for the Olympics. 

“If it coincides with our campaign, we may explore advertising for the Olympics on DD Sports as the ad rates offered by DD go as low as Rs 5,000 per ten seconds for an India - Australia cricket match. 

“For the Olympics, the ad rates going to be even lower. The ad rates do not correspond with the hype that has been created around the Olympics. However, it is all subject to change even if India wins a single gold medal at the Olympics,” added another industry source.

A senior marketer who preferred to remain anonymous mentioned the importance of moment marketing in the Olympics during an interaction with BestMediaInfo.com. 

“Only specific moments such as Neeraj Chopra winning the gold or two athletes from India and Pakistan competing in the finals bear fruit when it comes to advertising at the Olympics. Most brands are not ready to bet on the entire property and are only willing to spend if Indian athletes perform well,” quoted the source.

Moreover, additional sources reported having significant expectations from the performance of Indian athletes, “Considering the significant efforts by the Ministry of Sports to identify and nurture sporting talent in the country through initiatives such as Khelo India, we are hopeful that Indian athletes will win gold medals at the Olympics but we are still waiting to see how our athletes fare in the first week of the event.” 

“The enthusiasm among advertisers is fairly average when it comes to the Olympics as the property is fundamentally not as engaging as a Cricket World Cup. Although brand endorsements for athletes have gone up, if you switch on the TV, you can see every third ad featuring Neeraj Chopra,” said a senior media agency executive.