IPL 2018: Star India lures in 11 brand partners

What’s the story?

After acquiring the telecasting rights for the Indian Premier League, Star India has now lured in as many as 11 brands for what it calls 'reimagined' telecast of the IPL.

“IPL has always lived up to its promise of being the most impactful media property, and there is the added attraction of the return of two popular teams this year. We are seeing good traction with our clients. Star has developed a very strong marketing plan and created a lot of innovative opportunities for advertisers across their broadcast and digital platforms,” CVL Srinivas, CEO of GroupM South Asia was quoted as saying by Business Standard.

The details

Many of the prominent brands which will now be associated with the IPL include Vivo (also the title sponsor), Kent and Parle.

Apart from the usual suspects, newbies which will enter the fray include Elica Kitchens (modular kitchens), Dream11 (fantasy league ), Polycab Wires and Coca-Cola.

Anil Jayaraj, who is the executive vice-president and head of ad sales for Star Sports, is very optimistic ahead of the season and believes that having both TV and digital platforms will allow the brands to leverage the power of multi-screen.

Also, this will then allow them to combine the power of mass reach and targeted performance.

In case you didn’t know…

Sony Pictures Network India had nine brands associated with it in the previous season, while Hotstar had nearly 10 brands across the digital platform.

Experts peg Star India's estimated market profit across both television and digital platforms at about Rs 20 billion in ad-sales revenue.

What’s next?

Star India has already rolled out its six-month-long IPL engagement which began with the mega auctions and which would continue with highlights from the previous seasons. Also, it will focus on how different teams prepare.

These will be monetised content and also find an audience all across the country as different franchises have a certain catchment area!

Author’s take

There is little doubt over the reach and impact of the Indian Premier League and with the teams being realigned for the next few seasons, and with a new broadcaster stepping in, several brands will be keen to be a part of the bandwagon in the days to come.