Indian Cricket fans not having access to satellite TV can heave a sigh of relief. Doordarshan would be telecasting live 11 out of the 42 cricket World Cup matches to be played in England in 1999. The cost of securing the terrestrial rights of the matches is estimated to be over $5.5 million.
The 11 matches to be aired live by DD will include all the games featuring India, two semi-finals and the final at Lords. The Indian viewers can watch the highlights of the remaining matches. The tournament begins mid-1999.
Prasar Bharati sources confirmed that DD has managed to secure the terrestrial rights of the specified World Cup matches. "A memorandum of understanding to this effect has been signed with the England and Wales Cricket Board," the sources added. However, Mandi House's dreams of securing exclusive rights of World Cup matches has not been fulfilled. ESPN-Star Sports, a 50:50 joint venture between ESPN Inc and Rupert Murdoch-promoted Star TV, too has secured pan-Asian cable and satellite rights for the World Cup cricket matches at an estimated cost of $12 million.
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Media analysts pointed out that this means all the matches to be aired by DD will be available simultaneously on ESPN and Star Sports too. However, it has also been pointed out that the DD's massive reach (58 million households of all TV homes) compared to Star Sports and ESPN (estimated penetration 12 and 8 million TV homes, respectively) would help Mandi House market the 11 live matches and the highlights to make handsome profits along with its marketing agents. Earlier, DD refused to share the telecast of the World Cup soccer matches with ESPN.
DD officials had been contending that the terrestrial broadcaster, with over 70 per cent penetration, outstrips the reach of any other broadcaster in the country and with a cricket crazy nation like India, airing the World Cup matches on DD makes more business sense too for England and Wales Cricket Board. DD's attitude had compelled England and Wales Cricket Board to step in as the third umpire whose marketing director, Terry Blake, visited in India earlier this year to hold discussions with Doordarshan officials.
Even ESPN-Star Sports' Kelly Butler was in the country to sort out the issue.
But Mandi House sources admitted that the cost factor of acquiring exclusive telecast rights forced them to settle for simultaneous telecast with ESPN-Star Sports.