Pay only for matches played so far: Star Sports to IPL 2021 sponsors & advertisers

Indian Premier League’s (IPL) official broadcaster Star Sports has reportedly asked the advertisers, who had bought airtime on the now-suspended 14th edition of the tournament, to pay only for the matches which have been played.

Significantly, Star had bagged the IPL’s television and digital rights for the period between 2018-2022 at a sum of Rs 16,348 crore. As per the deal, Star was supposed to pay around Rs 54.5 crore per game in a 60-match season.

However, just 29 games were held before this year’s edition was forced to be suspended due to the pandemic.

Now, Star has approached its title sponsors and advertisers and has reportedly asked them to pay only for the games and an option to continue the deals when BCCI decides to resume the tournament for this season at a later stage.

Meanwhile, if the suspended 14th edition is again resumed by the BCCI, the sponsors and advertisers would have the flexibility to opt out from their contratcs.

Earlier last week, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was forced to indefinitely postponed the 14th season as the Covid-19 had breached its secured bio-bubble.

Significantly, Star had signed 18 sponsors across multiple categories for this year’s edition.

However, after the league was suspoended, several advertisers had claimed losses, although industry insiders had supported the Indian board’s decision.

Commenting on the postponement, a Star Sports spokesperson had last week said: “While it’s heartening to know that more viewers tuned in to watch this IPL season than the one in 2020 [at the same stage of the tournament], we still believe that postponing the season was the right decision to ensure the safety of everyone involved and in line with the prevailing situation in the country.”

News Desk

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