Hi, 

Welcome to Leeds1888 - Issue 49! Most of you must be aware of Virat Kohli's (The great Indian Batsman) recent 100 centuries, equaling the record of 49 centuries held by the great Sachin Tendulkar. Coincidentally, this is the 49th issue of Leeds1888, and we've decided to dedicate this issue to the legends of cricket and the game of cricket itself. After all, playing and watching sports is one of the greatest forms of entertainment for people!

If you're reading this newsletter for the first time, I cover news, views, and insights from the world of media and entertainment from across the globe.

The ICC Men's World Cup Cricket tournament is currently underway, and every day we witness some amazing action on the grounds by various teams. For people in cricket-loving nations, watching their favourite players in action on TV channels or streaming platforms is taking up a significant portion of their viewing time.

While on one hand, the TV and streaming viewership has broken all previous records, it's proving to be a double-edged sword when it comes to India's broadcasting rights. We will analyse the reasons behind this in this newsletter. 

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This newsletter will cover the following sections:-

• Top OTT Shows & Movies 

• Cricket World Cup 2023 viewership breaks past records, yet broadcasters are complaining, Why?

• Weekly Box Office Figures.

• News Buzz

Top watched OTT Shows this week

Top Movie releases this week

Cricket World Cup 2023 viewership breaks past records, yet broadcasters are complaining, Why?

For decades, sports broadcasting has been a cornerstone of television programming, generating billions of dollars in revenue for broadcasters and igniting a passion for sports across the globe.

The List of most watched sports events across the Globe

For cricket enthusiasts, the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup (CWC) is the pinnacle of sporting achievement, pitting the top teams from around the world against each other for the coveted title of world champions.

This year, the CWC is being held in India, with matches taking place from October 5 to November 19, 2023. In India, the matches are being broadcast live on Disney Star's sports channels, with streaming available across the world.

The 2023 CWC has already shattered viewership records, with staggering numbers eclipsing those of previous tournaments. Here are some eye-popping statistics:

• An astonishing 123.8 billion viewing minutes have been clocked on linear TV, a 43% increase over 2019.

• A staggering 364.2 million viewers have tuned in to watch the matches live, making it the biggest Cricket World Cup ever.

• Disney+ Hotstar, the official digital streaming partner, set a world record for any cricket format, reaching a peak concurrency of 43 million viewers during the India vs New Zealand match.

• The India vs Pakistan clash on October 14 in Ahmedabad saw a peak live concurrency of 76 million viewers on television and 35 million concurrent viewers on digital.

These remarkable viewership figures are music to the ears of broadcasters, as they translate directly into advertising revenue. Disney+ Hotstar, the official broadcaster, expects to generate a staggering INR 2200 crores, compared to just INR 1300 crores in 2019.

As Sanjog Gupta, Head of Sports at Disney Star, aptly put it, "Marquee cricket continues to demonstrate unparalleled capacity to aggregate audiences across platforms, and the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 has set new viewership benchmarks on Star Sports and Disney+ Hotstar."

This year's CWC has undoubtedly lived up to its billing as the world's biggest sporting spectacle, captivating audiences worldwide with its thrilling matches and captivating storylines.

The Valuation Effect

To capitalise on this cricket frenzy, channels and platforms have been aggressively bidding for broadcast rights over the years. To kick things off, let's delve into the explosive sales of IPL rights over the years.

The sale of broadcast rights, amounting to approximately $3 billion by the BCCI (Board of Cricket Control in India), caused valuations to soar, establishing a precedent for similar rights sales globally. Disney Star secured the ICC Match broadcast rights for a comparable sum of approximately $3 billion. Nonetheless, the practice of fetching substantial valuations for these rights has its roots in 2006 when the BCCI initially auctioned the rights to Nimbus for 2700 crores.

Due to financial difficulties at Nimbus, the rights contract was ultimately awarded to Star in 2010.

During that period, broadcasters had the flexibility to approach their distributors, offering a package of 40 channels, some of which would feature IPL or BCCI cricket. This strategy bolstered their subscription revenue.

In general, broadcasters rely on three primary revenue streams: 

• subscriptions, 

• advertising sales &

• syndication

Revenue from advertising alone was sufficient for Star to cover the acquisition costs of its cricket properties before 2018. Also, Star India's television advertising sales revenue surged nearly fivefold, from Rs 1,526.8 crore in FY10 to Rs 7,482 crore in FY18. Additionally, their digital platform, Hotstar, contributed a substantial Rs 568 crore in advertising revenue in FY2018.

Changing Landscape

1. TRAI Rules:

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) revised its rules in 2019, granting subscribers the option to select their subscription channels. This change resulted in the unbundling of channels and a reduction in advertising revenues, as sponsors now preferred to invest in high viewership channels. Media buying became more selective as a result.

2. Multiple Advertising Avenues

In recent years, the explosive growth of digital media has created new opportunities for advertisers, including platforms like Google, Meta, and Influencer ads. This expansion has encroached on the share of broadcast advertisements. Channels and broadcasters have encountered challenges in selling ad space at premium prices compared to the pre-2018 era.

3. Hyper-Competition

Digital streaming platforms are engaged in a fierce competition to establish dominance and attract subscribers. They are leveraging marquee sports events like the CWC to promote their platforms. Notably, Disney+Hotstar recently made its platform available for free viewing on mobile devices in an effort to entice new subscribers. While this may seem like an intriguing approach to acquiring new users, it comes at a considerable cost.

Even with projected revenues of 2200 crores, Disney will still struggle to turn a profit on a $3 billion rights acquisition unless they discover numerous avenues for monetising the platforms or channels.

Viewpoint

While the viewership of cricket is undeniably on the rise, it is crucial to strike a balance when selling media rights for these cricketing events. Exorbitant costs could deter broadcasters and potentially lead to losses. Such a scenario would be far from ideal for cricket fans worldwide. Sustaining a healthy and mutually beneficial ecosystem where broadcasters, advertisers, and fans all thrive is essential to ensure the continued growth and enjoyment of this beloved sport.

Box Office Collection Report

News Buzz!

• Nintendo has made it public that it plans to develop a live-action film of The Legend of Zelda, one of its most popular characters after the success of Mario Bros. Read more on this here

• As 'The Marvels' movie is set for release on 10th November, will it turn the fortunes and help the Marvel studio recover from an otherwise bad theatrical year? Read this interesting article on the topic by CNN here

That's all for this week, keep reading and spreading the news about Leeds1888 in your network.  Also do enrol for the referral programme to win Amazon Vouchers !

Vipul