#ICCWorldCup2019: India vs Pakistan Match to fetch premium ad revenue for Star Sports
Historically, India vs Pakistan bouts have always garnered high viewership and reach.
ICC World Cup 2019 has started on a high with matches broadcasted across television and digital garnering high viewership and reach. As per published data, the inaugural match between England and South Africa clocked a reach of 114 million on TV. The average viewership was 101 million impressions, as per BARC viewership data shared by Star India.
In terms of reach, World Cup has seen a 2.2 X jump compared to the opening match of the most recently played ICC tournament, the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, between England and Bangladesh. For the record, the matches are broadcast in Kannada, Hindi, Tamil, English, Telugu, Marathi, Bangla and Malayalam.
Several experts opine that Star Sports will be able to break all the viewership records during the ICC World Cup 2019. However, on June 16, Star Sports is expected to air the biggest match of the tournament. This will be India vs Pakistan and historically, the bout has always garnered high viewership and reach for the broadcaster.
As per a published report, the India-Pakistan group stage match in ICC World Cup 2015 was watched by 288 million people in the country and India vs Australia semi-final clash was watched by 309 million people. A total of 635 million Indians tuned into television to watch ICC World Cup 2015.
Owing to the language feeds, the channel will definitely have a higher viewership for the forthcoming match on June 16. This will be coupled with the additional viewership from Hotstar that has also emerged as the preferred medium for viewing the World Cup matches.
Sudhir Kumar, Director – Offline Media, DCMN India mentions that the viewership for the forthcoming match will be high. “If you analyse, the match is coming on a Sunday and during the prime time. This will increase the viewership because everyone will be watching it with their friends and family. We expect that the viewership will increase by 20 – 30%.”
Several industry sources also mention that Star Sports has sold out the digital inventory for the India Vs Pakistan match with an expected 12-15 million viewers viewing the game on digital.
Traditionally, India vs Pakistan match has also commanded a higher ad slot rate as compared to other matches owing to high viewership and attention span. Star had saved a part of their inventory both on digital and TV for the last fortnight. Experts point that the inventory is to the tune of 5000 seconds on television is going somewhere to the tune of Rs 15 – 20 lakh per 10 seconds.
Kumar points that a lot of brands would like to be present during the India vs Pakistan and are even ready to pay a premium for it. This will include both traditional as well as new age players. “The rates for India-Pakistan match are always high, around 100% premium especially if you buy slots during the India-Pakistan match at World Cup level. Brands clearly understand the benefits of being present during such high impact game,” shares Kumar.
Star India is already leaving no stone unturned from its side to create excitement around the game. They released a high intensity ad film Baap re Baap that was able to garner attention from all ends of the society and even garnered a response from other side of the border.
All in all, both audiences and broadcasters are looking for an action-packed Sunday, June 16.