Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) has agreed to an eight-year cricket broadcast rights deal with the Cricket Council of Asia.
The agreement includes all editions of the Men’s and Women’s Asian Cup, Men’s and Women’s U-19 Asian Cup, and Men’s and Women’s Emerging Teams Asian Cup.
The contract was concluded after a bidding process and the winning bid represents a 70% increase in the value of the rights, ACC said, without disclosing the bid price. Multiple Indian media outlets, citing anonymous sources, reported that the deal was worth $170 million.
The significant increase in entitlement value will “enable the ACC to direct significant resources to grassroots programs, infrastructure development and talent pathways, particularly for member states,” the group said.
“Congratulations to the ACC for implementing a fair and transparent bidding process for the rights to the ACC Tournament! We are excited to bring these action-packed tournaments, which also include matches between India and Pakistan, to our viewers for the next eight years. I think so,” said Gaurav Banerjee, MD and CEO, SPNI.
Sony was looking to expand its television and streaming business in India through a merger deal with Zee Entertainment Enterprises. However, the agreement collapsed in January after more than two years of negotiations. As a result, India’s mid-sized TV operators are looking for new ways to scale up.
Cricket rights in particular have become a key battleground for broadcasters and streamers as they generate huge audiences and drive advertising and subscriber acquisition.
Earlier this year, India’s antitrust regulator expressed concern about the concentration of cricket rights in the hands of Reliance Industries (Viacom, Jio) and Disney. Despite the concerns, the two companies received approval from regulators to merge. According to Indian media sources, Jio and Disney did not bid for the ACC rights.
Earlier this year, SPNI acquired television and digital broadcast rights for all New Zealand-based men’s and women’s cricket matches in India and associated territories for the next seven years. The agreement is valid from May 1, 2024 to April 30, 2031 and covers India’s tours to New Zealand in the summers of 2026-27 and 2030-31, and All other bilateral Tests, ODIs and T20Is will be included. period. All games will be broadcast on SPNI’s sports channel and streamed on SonyLIV.
