The four consecutive victories of the Chennai Indian Premier League cricket team Super Kings has filmmakers in Tamil Nadu fuming because it has resulted in their box office collections dropping, says distributor Kalaipuli G. Shekharan.
“Success in the cricket field has resulted in thin crowd at the theatres translating into losses for distributors and exhibitors,” Shekharan told IANS.
"There are hardly 30 people in cinemas for the evening and night shows making people like me wonder whether the business of movie distribution is worth pursuing," said Shekharan.
He is presently distributing four films in the biggest movie territory in Tamil Nadu comprising Chennai, Kanchipuram and Tiruvallur districts.
"The April-May period is usually our peak season since educational institutions are closed and fans visit cinemas in droves. But this year, due to the IPL T20 matches, virtually nobody is turning up at the theatres," Shekharan complained.
"While multiplexes are hedging their bets with different genres of films, the cups of woe at single-screen cinemas are full as even the costs of electricity consumed during evening and night shows cannot be covered. As a result, several producers are thinking of deferring their releases," informed Shekharan.
"Producers are waiting to know the fate of a major blockbuster ‘Kuruvi’ starring Vijay releasing Friday since he is a brand ambassador of the Chennai team," he added.
The movies affected by IPL matches include "Santosh Subramaniam" featuring Jeeva - the collections of the film dropped 85 percent ; “Yaaradi Nee Mohini” - this Dhanush starrer is a hit but its collections fell by 90 percent; “Arai En 305il Kadavul” - the film, which has Prakash Raj in the lead, is the worst affected since its collections never went beyond 40 percent since release; and “Iyakkam” - starring newcomers, the film sank without a trace.
Indo-Asian News Service
Showing posts with label IPL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label IPL. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Indians the world over excited by new 'cricketainment'?
Cricket-loving Indians across the globe are ecstatic about the latest and greatest tournament under the Indian Premier League (IPL). This humongous extravaganza combines the glamour of Bollywood with the fanatic following of cricket among Indians across the world. The Twenty20 matches are as long as a Bollywood film and - hopefully - just as exciting. No wonder it has been dubbed as "Cricketainment".
The billion-dollar tournament between eight Indian city clubs borrows from British football clubs and American basketball championships. Middle-aged NRIs in the United States who grew up in India and always missed cricket excitement can now relish this new avatar of the game on slick lines. They can watch the action for three or four hours without losing sleep for the entire night as for one-day and three-day matches. Says Sameeer 'Sam' Khanna from New Jersey, "I missed cricket action here; and my kids have grown up without enjoying cricket action. Now with these Bollywood stars, they can be attracted to cricket."
British NRIs have always had a good and healthy dose of cricket in their country of adoption. But British cricket players have not been allowed to play in IPL to rake in high fees like football players. Cricket is declining in Britain due to the lacklustre performance of its national team, said Rajinder 'Ricky' Syal of Birmingham. As an avid cricket fan, he welcomes IPL as the next big thing in the evolution of the game and hopes that his favourite British cricket stars will be allowed in IPL in the near future.
NRIs in Australia hail India as the new superpower of cricket after the recent face-off in Australia when the Indian team threatened to return and pay a heavy fine. Shan Gupta of Melbourne said he is happy to see both Australian and Indian players as a team to add spice to the game. "Cricket will never be the same after IPL; but I still support India when it plays against Australia," he adds.
The last big leap - or a Kangaroo Leap - for cricket came from Australia 30 years ago when Kerry Packer of Australia started the one-day cricket matches in 1977 to break away from professional cricket. Interestingly, both one-day and IPL matches have resulted from similar TV rivalries. One-dayers or world series cricket started due to two main factors - the widespread view that players were not paid sufficient money to make a living from cricket, and that Packer wished to secure the exclusive broadcasting rights to Australian cricket for his Nine Network, then held by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). The white flannels were replaced by colourful tracksuits for TV coverage.
Last year, Zee TV could not get the rights for telecasting cricket matches and so they roped in the legendary Kapil Dev to start their own Indian Cricket League or ICL. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) hit back with IPL. The auction for eight teams on Jan 24, 2008, had a base price at $400 million but fetched over $700 million and Sony TV got the rights.
From then onwards, there was no holding back for the rollercoaster as Shah Rukh Khan and Juhi Chawla bought a team and so did Preity Zinta with her boyfriend Ness Wadia. The big business houses of Vijay Mallya and Mukesh Ambani; media houses Deccan Chronicle and UK-based Emerging Media; major corporations like India Cements and GMR also bought teams, and the tournament is sponsored by DLF.
The national boundaries of world cricket have been erased with IPL. Will the fans cheer their national teams or their club teams with players from different countries? With the passionate fans be equally inflamed by their national heroes pitted against each other? Will they start dancing in the streets and burst firecrackers when the Indian team wins? Will cricket promote India's national unity in all its diversity as in the past? Big money and big media will create new loyalties for fans. Big money has bought the teams and players and paid millions in advertising support while big media, especially the TV channels, will promote and project IPL as the greatest show on earth.
The razzmatazz from Akshay Kumar and Daler Mehndi, shapely cheerleaders never seen on any cricket ground, an F1 car of Force India, big beat music, acrobats, stilt-dancers, laser shows and firecrackers amounted to a heady cocktail of cricket. The inaugural match in Bangalore was a stunner in terms of both showmanship and sports performances. This was the modern version of the ancient Roman Circus, the top entertainment of people with gladiators and wild animals. Now the Roman saying, 'Give them bread, give them circus', has been replaced by a newer version, 'Give them chapati, give them cricket'.
The billion-dollar tournament between eight Indian city clubs borrows from British football clubs and American basketball championships. Middle-aged NRIs in the United States who grew up in India and always missed cricket excitement can now relish this new avatar of the game on slick lines. They can watch the action for three or four hours without losing sleep for the entire night as for one-day and three-day matches. Says Sameeer 'Sam' Khanna from New Jersey, "I missed cricket action here; and my kids have grown up without enjoying cricket action. Now with these Bollywood stars, they can be attracted to cricket."
British NRIs have always had a good and healthy dose of cricket in their country of adoption. But British cricket players have not been allowed to play in IPL to rake in high fees like football players. Cricket is declining in Britain due to the lacklustre performance of its national team, said Rajinder 'Ricky' Syal of Birmingham. As an avid cricket fan, he welcomes IPL as the next big thing in the evolution of the game and hopes that his favourite British cricket stars will be allowed in IPL in the near future.
NRIs in Australia hail India as the new superpower of cricket after the recent face-off in Australia when the Indian team threatened to return and pay a heavy fine. Shan Gupta of Melbourne said he is happy to see both Australian and Indian players as a team to add spice to the game. "Cricket will never be the same after IPL; but I still support India when it plays against Australia," he adds.
The last big leap - or a Kangaroo Leap - for cricket came from Australia 30 years ago when Kerry Packer of Australia started the one-day cricket matches in 1977 to break away from professional cricket. Interestingly, both one-day and IPL matches have resulted from similar TV rivalries. One-dayers or world series cricket started due to two main factors - the widespread view that players were not paid sufficient money to make a living from cricket, and that Packer wished to secure the exclusive broadcasting rights to Australian cricket for his Nine Network, then held by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). The white flannels were replaced by colourful tracksuits for TV coverage.
Last year, Zee TV could not get the rights for telecasting cricket matches and so they roped in the legendary Kapil Dev to start their own Indian Cricket League or ICL. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) hit back with IPL. The auction for eight teams on Jan 24, 2008, had a base price at $400 million but fetched over $700 million and Sony TV got the rights.
From then onwards, there was no holding back for the rollercoaster as Shah Rukh Khan and Juhi Chawla bought a team and so did Preity Zinta with her boyfriend Ness Wadia. The big business houses of Vijay Mallya and Mukesh Ambani; media houses Deccan Chronicle and UK-based Emerging Media; major corporations like India Cements and GMR also bought teams, and the tournament is sponsored by DLF.
The national boundaries of world cricket have been erased with IPL. Will the fans cheer their national teams or their club teams with players from different countries? With the passionate fans be equally inflamed by their national heroes pitted against each other? Will they start dancing in the streets and burst firecrackers when the Indian team wins? Will cricket promote India's national unity in all its diversity as in the past? Big money and big media will create new loyalties for fans. Big money has bought the teams and players and paid millions in advertising support while big media, especially the TV channels, will promote and project IPL as the greatest show on earth.
The razzmatazz from Akshay Kumar and Daler Mehndi, shapely cheerleaders never seen on any cricket ground, an F1 car of Force India, big beat music, acrobats, stilt-dancers, laser shows and firecrackers amounted to a heady cocktail of cricket. The inaugural match in Bangalore was a stunner in terms of both showmanship and sports performances. This was the modern version of the ancient Roman Circus, the top entertainment of people with gladiators and wild animals. Now the Roman saying, 'Give them bread, give them circus', has been replaced by a newer version, 'Give them chapati, give them cricket'.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
'IPL may not find viewers', says agencyfaqs
When the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) announced the formation of a Twenty20 league late last year, it created a furore. Everything about the game seemed larger than life, whether it was the prize money of Rs 35 crore (the highest ever in the game’s history), or celebrities buying teams, or the unabashed players’ auction.
Starting April 18, the IPL tournament will go on air on SET Max on prime time, 8-11pm, on all days and 4-7pm for two matches. Initially, it was thought that the IPL telecast would be bad news for the general entertainment channels (GECs), which usually air their strongest properties 8pm to 11pm. Now, however, with the IPL matches about to start, this line of thought is not as confident as before.
The hype and hullabaloo
It’s an undisputable fact that the BCCI has managed to create a property that is making waves, despite the existence of a similar format promoted by the Essel Group, called the Indian Cricket League. From a renewed interest in the game among cricket lovers to the accompanying media blitzkrieg, the IPL was welcomed with much fanfare. In fact, SET Max, the official broadcaster, has humorously positioned it as ‘Manoranjan ka Baap (the Father of Entertainment)’.
However, media observers such as Kajal Malik, vice-president, Interactions, a Lintas Media Group agency, believes that though the IPL is enjoying vast media coverage, it has failed to leverage mass media. She is of the opinion that in a game like this, mass media will play a crucial role. What has been running on mass media is the IPL campaign by the BCCI and SET Max.
“I don’t see the franchises leveraging mass media enough, considering that the team campaigns haven’t really kick-started,” says Malik. After stealing the thunder from the ICL, the BCCI is taking the concept to a bigger level with bigger players, but that hasn’t translated into bigger hype, apart from the media coverage it is enjoying, she says.
‘My India’ missing
In spite of the initial excitement around the tournament, media observers are almost unanimous in their opinion that the one thing that the IPL teams lack is Team India spirit. And the lack of this critical aspect of loyalty and nationalism might create a few roadblocks for the IPL’s popularity. Since there is no national pride involved in this game, it seems uncertain which team the audiences will root for. Though cricket ignites passion, this one may not, because there is no Team India to which the audiences can relate. After all, it is national pride that has made cricket and its heroes.
Hence, the most challenging job for any of the team owners is to drive and excite the audience. Unless they are given a solid proposition, the viewer has no reason to be passionate about the game or the teams at this point of time. And sadly, the franchise owners have only about 10 days to ignite passion among cricket lovers.
In fact, the team owners are trying hard to create fan followings for their respective teams, but considering that the tournament will go on air on April 18, it’s probably too late. Each team has appointed an advertising agency to handle its marketing communication, complete with team anthem, team mascot and merchandise. Nevertheless, there is no clear knowledge about the teams, except for a few senior players; media observers believe this could go against the IPL.
The IPL is riding on a totally new concept, Twenty20, which, it is believed, will bring ‘club culture’ into cricket. “How much passion a club team will ignite in the audience remains to be seen,” says a senior media planner.
And when it comes to converting the same to television viewership, Praveen Tripathi chief executive, Hansa Consulting, predicts that it certainly won’t have the same effect that an India one day match would have. “When there is an India match playing, the entire nation watches. When there is a Chandigarh versus Kolkata match, one would expect the whole of Punjab to root for Chandigarh and the whole of Kolkata to root for Kolkata. And that’s a small fraction of the country,” he explains. He is of the opinion that people in most cities will cheer for their own teams.
Overall, the effect will be less than that of a one day match with India playing and more than a one dayer without India playing.
The IPL is expected to attract two categories of viewers – diehard cricket fans who watch cricket as a sport whether India plays or not, and amateur, cricket illiterate lovers from the cities which are playing. But again, this won’t add up to the whole of India. However, Tripathi hopes that if the cricket matches become more than just sport and have entertainment value added to them, they will be bigger hits.
Fight for the remote
Media planners also foresee a possible fight for the remote by family members in single television households, which are in a majority in India. The regular GEC viewer will now have to vie with the avid cricket fans at home. But everyone agrees that it is almost impossible that all homes will be tuned in to cricket all 44 days because most women can’t abstain from their daily dose of drama for that long.
“It will be hard for her, as that’s her ‘space out’ time after a hard day’s work and, being quite engrossed in the happenings in the serials, she looks forward to the next episode,” says Sandeep Lakhina, managing director, India, West and South, Starcom. He believes that even if some women have to give in to the IPL, they will watch their serials on the afternoon repeats, which means the afternoon viewership may pick up.
Prem Kamath, vice-president, marketing, STAR India, sees no reason to worry. “We are talking about two entirely different viewer experiences here,” he says. “The 8-11pm slot on GECs is ruled by daily soaps, which have been going on for long and have a big following.”
No doubt these programmes have built a relationship with the audience on an ongoing basis and the audience comes back to watch them every day. However, the hype and expectations around the IPL will lead to an initial sampling. “But on the whole, I don’t expect the GECs to be affected by the IPL,” says Kamath confidently.
Malik supports Kamath’s view. “The current stronger programmes don’t have too much to worry about, at least initially. Weaker programmes which are already on a slide will see viewership getting fragmented,” she says.
Viewership pattern
The IPL will garner varying viewership, depending on a variety of factors such as team composition, intensity of the match, etc. Malik believes that if a team’s composition is a little stronger with recognised players, it will command higher viewership. Lakhani predicts that matches featuring the Mumbai and Delhi teams might get higher viewership since these metros form a large percentage of the TV audience. He is obviously of the opinion that support may be led more by “my favourite player” than by city.
The most interesting match is expected to draw a TVR of 3.5, and the others, around 3, which is much lower than that garnered by any of the shows on STAR Plus on prime time.
GECs gearing up
According to media analysts, the GECs are gearing up to face the IPL challenge. STAR Plus has Kya Aap Paanchvi Paas Se Tez Hai?, the show hosted by Shah Rukh Khan, which will go on air from April 25. It has launched another show called Joh Jeeta Wohi Superstar, a singing reality show, which will feature popular contestants from all the singing contest shows held till date across channels. Both these shows are weekend shows. Meanwhile, to boost its long-running saga, Kyunki… Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, the channel has got Smriti Irani, the original Tulsi, back on the show.
While Kamath denies that any efforts are being made to strengthen the weekday prime time offerings, Lakhina believes there is s strategy in place. “I have a feeling that STAR, Zee and others may shift some of their prime time programming to avoid clashes with the IPL,” he says. Zee already has Rock-N-Roll Family, which is a dance based reality show featuring families (three generations) and being judged by actors Tanuja, Kajol and Ajay Devgan.
On the whole, the GECs are taking a wait and watch attitude to the IPL platform. The consensus is that while this year, the IPL might manage to attract sports enthusiasts initially, it may not manage steady viewership over a longer period of time because of the already established properties on GECs. Perhaps it will be a different story next year once the game and teams are better known. As of now, the GECs have no reason to worry.
Starting April 18, the IPL tournament will go on air on SET Max on prime time, 8-11pm, on all days and 4-7pm for two matches. Initially, it was thought that the IPL telecast would be bad news for the general entertainment channels (GECs), which usually air their strongest properties 8pm to 11pm. Now, however, with the IPL matches about to start, this line of thought is not as confident as before.
The hype and hullabaloo
It’s an undisputable fact that the BCCI has managed to create a property that is making waves, despite the existence of a similar format promoted by the Essel Group, called the Indian Cricket League. From a renewed interest in the game among cricket lovers to the accompanying media blitzkrieg, the IPL was welcomed with much fanfare. In fact, SET Max, the official broadcaster, has humorously positioned it as ‘Manoranjan ka Baap (the Father of Entertainment)’.
However, media observers such as Kajal Malik, vice-president, Interactions, a Lintas Media Group agency, believes that though the IPL is enjoying vast media coverage, it has failed to leverage mass media. She is of the opinion that in a game like this, mass media will play a crucial role. What has been running on mass media is the IPL campaign by the BCCI and SET Max.
“I don’t see the franchises leveraging mass media enough, considering that the team campaigns haven’t really kick-started,” says Malik. After stealing the thunder from the ICL, the BCCI is taking the concept to a bigger level with bigger players, but that hasn’t translated into bigger hype, apart from the media coverage it is enjoying, she says.
‘My India’ missing
In spite of the initial excitement around the tournament, media observers are almost unanimous in their opinion that the one thing that the IPL teams lack is Team India spirit. And the lack of this critical aspect of loyalty and nationalism might create a few roadblocks for the IPL’s popularity. Since there is no national pride involved in this game, it seems uncertain which team the audiences will root for. Though cricket ignites passion, this one may not, because there is no Team India to which the audiences can relate. After all, it is national pride that has made cricket and its heroes.
Hence, the most challenging job for any of the team owners is to drive and excite the audience. Unless they are given a solid proposition, the viewer has no reason to be passionate about the game or the teams at this point of time. And sadly, the franchise owners have only about 10 days to ignite passion among cricket lovers.
In fact, the team owners are trying hard to create fan followings for their respective teams, but considering that the tournament will go on air on April 18, it’s probably too late. Each team has appointed an advertising agency to handle its marketing communication, complete with team anthem, team mascot and merchandise. Nevertheless, there is no clear knowledge about the teams, except for a few senior players; media observers believe this could go against the IPL.
The IPL is riding on a totally new concept, Twenty20, which, it is believed, will bring ‘club culture’ into cricket. “How much passion a club team will ignite in the audience remains to be seen,” says a senior media planner.
And when it comes to converting the same to television viewership, Praveen Tripathi chief executive, Hansa Consulting, predicts that it certainly won’t have the same effect that an India one day match would have. “When there is an India match playing, the entire nation watches. When there is a Chandigarh versus Kolkata match, one would expect the whole of Punjab to root for Chandigarh and the whole of Kolkata to root for Kolkata. And that’s a small fraction of the country,” he explains. He is of the opinion that people in most cities will cheer for their own teams.
Overall, the effect will be less than that of a one day match with India playing and more than a one dayer without India playing.
The IPL is expected to attract two categories of viewers – diehard cricket fans who watch cricket as a sport whether India plays or not, and amateur, cricket illiterate lovers from the cities which are playing. But again, this won’t add up to the whole of India. However, Tripathi hopes that if the cricket matches become more than just sport and have entertainment value added to them, they will be bigger hits.
Fight for the remote
Media planners also foresee a possible fight for the remote by family members in single television households, which are in a majority in India. The regular GEC viewer will now have to vie with the avid cricket fans at home. But everyone agrees that it is almost impossible that all homes will be tuned in to cricket all 44 days because most women can’t abstain from their daily dose of drama for that long.
“It will be hard for her, as that’s her ‘space out’ time after a hard day’s work and, being quite engrossed in the happenings in the serials, she looks forward to the next episode,” says Sandeep Lakhina, managing director, India, West and South, Starcom. He believes that even if some women have to give in to the IPL, they will watch their serials on the afternoon repeats, which means the afternoon viewership may pick up.
Prem Kamath, vice-president, marketing, STAR India, sees no reason to worry. “We are talking about two entirely different viewer experiences here,” he says. “The 8-11pm slot on GECs is ruled by daily soaps, which have been going on for long and have a big following.”
No doubt these programmes have built a relationship with the audience on an ongoing basis and the audience comes back to watch them every day. However, the hype and expectations around the IPL will lead to an initial sampling. “But on the whole, I don’t expect the GECs to be affected by the IPL,” says Kamath confidently.
Malik supports Kamath’s view. “The current stronger programmes don’t have too much to worry about, at least initially. Weaker programmes which are already on a slide will see viewership getting fragmented,” she says.
Viewership pattern
The IPL will garner varying viewership, depending on a variety of factors such as team composition, intensity of the match, etc. Malik believes that if a team’s composition is a little stronger with recognised players, it will command higher viewership. Lakhani predicts that matches featuring the Mumbai and Delhi teams might get higher viewership since these metros form a large percentage of the TV audience. He is obviously of the opinion that support may be led more by “my favourite player” than by city.
The most interesting match is expected to draw a TVR of 3.5, and the others, around 3, which is much lower than that garnered by any of the shows on STAR Plus on prime time.
GECs gearing up
According to media analysts, the GECs are gearing up to face the IPL challenge. STAR Plus has Kya Aap Paanchvi Paas Se Tez Hai?, the show hosted by Shah Rukh Khan, which will go on air from April 25. It has launched another show called Joh Jeeta Wohi Superstar, a singing reality show, which will feature popular contestants from all the singing contest shows held till date across channels. Both these shows are weekend shows. Meanwhile, to boost its long-running saga, Kyunki… Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, the channel has got Smriti Irani, the original Tulsi, back on the show.
While Kamath denies that any efforts are being made to strengthen the weekday prime time offerings, Lakhina believes there is s strategy in place. “I have a feeling that STAR, Zee and others may shift some of their prime time programming to avoid clashes with the IPL,” he says. Zee already has Rock-N-Roll Family, which is a dance based reality show featuring families (three generations) and being judged by actors Tanuja, Kajol and Ajay Devgan.
On the whole, the GECs are taking a wait and watch attitude to the IPL platform. The consensus is that while this year, the IPL might manage to attract sports enthusiasts initially, it may not manage steady viewership over a longer period of time because of the already established properties on GECs. Perhaps it will be a different story next year once the game and teams are better known. As of now, the GECs have no reason to worry.
Kingfisher Airlines Becomes Official Airline of the DLF Indian Premier League
The DLF Indian Premier League today announced that Kingfisher Airlines, the country's only 5 Star Airline has been chosen as the Official Airline for the league. The appointment as the official airline partner is in addition to Kingfisher Airlines' earlier commitment to the DLF Indian Premier League as the Umpire Partner. As per the official airline partner agreement, Kingfisher Airlines will extend its world-class, award-winning hospitality to all teams of the DLF IPL and BCCI officials. Also on offer will be dedicated check-in counters, VIP lounge access, an exclusive ground handling team at all airports and a special helpline number for all air travel needs.
Lalit Modi, Chairman and Commissioner, DLF Indian Premier League said, "I am very pleased to have the country's premier 5 star airline Kingfisher Airlines join us as our Official Airline Partner. I am certain that the cricketers and officials alike will enjoy the 5 star hospitality of the airline while flying the good times across the country getting from one match to another. Their decision to extend the association beyond being umpire partners further bears testimony to the fact that the DLF Indian Premier League is here to stay and is set to carve out a distinct niche for itself in the international cricketing calendar."
Dr. Vijay Mallya, Chairman & CEO, Kingfisher Airlines Limited said, "We are delighted to extend our partnership with the DLF Indian Premier League as the official airline partner. Our multi-year agreement with the DLF Indian Premier League is further testimony of our commitment to Indian sports. I am certain that all the players and officials of the DLF Indian Premier League will undoubtedly enjoy our hospitality and fly the good times during the forty-four days of intense competition. The DLF Indian Premier League is a highly innovative concept and the Twenty20 format will undoubtedly take cricket's popularity to a new high. I welcome all DLF IPL guests to sit back, relax and enjoy the Kingfisher experience."
Kingfisher Airlines has a long association with a variety of sports at both the domestic and international level including Tennis, Formula 1, Polo and now Cricket. Earlier Leading sports broadcaster Sony Max & World Sport Group had bagged DLF Indian Premier League's global media and production rights for USD$ 1.026 billion. DLF Ltd., India's leading real estate company is the league's title sponsor, while Hero Honda, the country's largest two-wheeler maker, won the Co-Sponsorship rights for the cricket extravaganza. PepsiCo India, one of the country's leading beverage companies, has been chosen as the Official Beverage Supplier and Kingfisher Airlines, the country's only 5 Star Airline, is the Official Umpire Partner for the league.
The DLF Indian Premier League is ready to kick off on April 18th 2008, with some high voltage action expected between Shah Rukh Khan's Kolkata franchise and Dr. Vijay Mallya's Royal Challengers of Bangalore at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium at Bangalore. The DLF Indian Premier League will feature eight Franchises and will run for 44 days. Each Franchise will play others on a home and away basis with 7 matches at home. The top 4 Franchises in the league will contest the semi-finals and the victorious semi-finalists will meet in the Grand Final all over one weekend, which will be played out in Mumbai.
The inaugural season of the DLF Indian Premier League will showcase a grand total of 59 matches providing broadcasters and in-stadia spectators with 177 hours of live "family entertainment", which will also be viewed by a significant international audience. All matches will be during late afternoon and evening to coincide with prime time for television and providing a convenient time for the stadium audience.
Lalit Modi, Chairman and Commissioner, DLF Indian Premier League said, "I am very pleased to have the country's premier 5 star airline Kingfisher Airlines join us as our Official Airline Partner. I am certain that the cricketers and officials alike will enjoy the 5 star hospitality of the airline while flying the good times across the country getting from one match to another. Their decision to extend the association beyond being umpire partners further bears testimony to the fact that the DLF Indian Premier League is here to stay and is set to carve out a distinct niche for itself in the international cricketing calendar."
Dr. Vijay Mallya, Chairman & CEO, Kingfisher Airlines Limited said, "We are delighted to extend our partnership with the DLF Indian Premier League as the official airline partner. Our multi-year agreement with the DLF Indian Premier League is further testimony of our commitment to Indian sports. I am certain that all the players and officials of the DLF Indian Premier League will undoubtedly enjoy our hospitality and fly the good times during the forty-four days of intense competition. The DLF Indian Premier League is a highly innovative concept and the Twenty20 format will undoubtedly take cricket's popularity to a new high. I welcome all DLF IPL guests to sit back, relax and enjoy the Kingfisher experience."
Kingfisher Airlines has a long association with a variety of sports at both the domestic and international level including Tennis, Formula 1, Polo and now Cricket. Earlier Leading sports broadcaster Sony Max & World Sport Group had bagged DLF Indian Premier League's global media and production rights for USD$ 1.026 billion. DLF Ltd., India's leading real estate company is the league's title sponsor, while Hero Honda, the country's largest two-wheeler maker, won the Co-Sponsorship rights for the cricket extravaganza. PepsiCo India, one of the country's leading beverage companies, has been chosen as the Official Beverage Supplier and Kingfisher Airlines, the country's only 5 Star Airline, is the Official Umpire Partner for the league.
The DLF Indian Premier League is ready to kick off on April 18th 2008, with some high voltage action expected between Shah Rukh Khan's Kolkata franchise and Dr. Vijay Mallya's Royal Challengers of Bangalore at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium at Bangalore. The DLF Indian Premier League will feature eight Franchises and will run for 44 days. Each Franchise will play others on a home and away basis with 7 matches at home. The top 4 Franchises in the league will contest the semi-finals and the victorious semi-finalists will meet in the Grand Final all over one weekend, which will be played out in Mumbai.
The inaugural season of the DLF Indian Premier League will showcase a grand total of 59 matches providing broadcasters and in-stadia spectators with 177 hours of live "family entertainment", which will also be viewed by a significant international audience. All matches will be during late afternoon and evening to coincide with prime time for television and providing a convenient time for the stadium audience.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Ravi Krishnan joins IPL Jaipur franchise as Vice Chairman
Ravi Krishnan, former Managing Director at IMG South Asia, has joined the Indian Premier League (IPL) Jaipur franchise, owned by Emerging Media, as Vice Chairman. Krishnan has over a decade’s experience in sports marketing in India and Asia.
Commenting on the new appointment, Krishnan said, “IPL is the biggest thing to have happened in the history of Indian sports. The approach, which the owners of the Jaipur franchise have demonstrated, is one of utmost professionalism and planning. This augurs well for success both on and off field. We are in it to win.”
Manoj Badale, Chairman, Emerging Media, said, “The team is incredibly excited about the addition of Ravi. His reputation and knowledge in this industry will be very valuable, and his commercial experience is unparalleled in this market.”
Krishnan will play an advisory role to the franchise in structuring the business for commercial, operational and on-field success. He will continue to be the proprietor of ABLER Advisory Pvt Ltd, an investment advisory focused principally on private equity in real estate. Prior to Abler Advisory, Krishnan had spent over 11 years with IMG South Asia, based in India. Credits: exchange4media
Commenting on the new appointment, Krishnan said, “IPL is the biggest thing to have happened in the history of Indian sports. The approach, which the owners of the Jaipur franchise have demonstrated, is one of utmost professionalism and planning. This augurs well for success both on and off field. We are in it to win.”
Manoj Badale, Chairman, Emerging Media, said, “The team is incredibly excited about the addition of Ravi. His reputation and knowledge in this industry will be very valuable, and his commercial experience is unparalleled in this market.”
Krishnan will play an advisory role to the franchise in structuring the business for commercial, operational and on-field success. He will continue to be the proprietor of ABLER Advisory Pvt Ltd, an investment advisory focused principally on private equity in real estate. Prior to Abler Advisory, Krishnan had spent over 11 years with IMG South Asia, based in India. Credits: exchange4media
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