$612 mn cricket rights for Nimbus

Nimbus Communications bid nearly $100 mn more than closest rival Zee Telefilms.

Television production company Nimbus Communications has bagged global media rights for all international and domestic cricket organised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), to be played in the country over the next four years, for $612 million (approximately Rs 2,730 crore).

Nimbus emerged the winner of the contract that includes cable, broadband and direct-to-home (DTH) rights, and Internet and radio, excluding mobile, putting the protracted legal battle for rights in world cricket's commercial hub to an end.

"Nimbus was the clear winner with the highest bid in all combinations," Lalit Modi, marketing committee head of the BCCI, announced in a press conference today.

Nimbus had also clinched television production rights last week for all international and domestic matches in India until 2010 for Rs 23 crore.

With today's deal, the BCCI had signed contracts worth $754 million (approximately Rs 3,363 crore) for the next four years, marking an almost 10-fold jump in revenue from the previous four years, Modi said. Previously, the BCCI awarded the team sponsorship contract to Sahara for Rs 313.8 crore and the official kit sponsorship to Nike for Rs 196.66 crore.

Nimbus' bid was nearly $100 million more than its closest rival Zee Telefilms, which quoted a composite bid of $513 million. Others submitted staggered bids.

ESPN Software bid for the Indian territory ($401.89 million), Nimbus Sports International Pte for international territories ($126 million), Adlabs for radio rights ($14.8 million) and Reliance Infocomm for broadband rights ($ 7.8 million).

The agreement will cover 23 Tests and 55 One-Day Internationals, beginning with England's current tour of India. The agreement commences on March 1 this year and expires on March 31, 2010.

It includes terrestrial rights in the country, although the BCCI, has made it clear that the successful bidder will have to do an independent deal with Prasar Bharati, which runs Doordarshan.

Nimbus Chairman and Managing Director Harish Thawani said the company would announce the channel on which the matches would be shown on February 22.

Experts said broadcasters that failed to win media rights might end up buying some of the rights from Nimbus.

Thawani added the company would look at all possibilities, including acquisition of a channel and partnerships with the existing ones, for execution of the deal.