NEW DELHI: As the Indian Premier League (IPL) enters the crucial knock-out stage, official broadcaster Sony Max has bowled a bouncer at media buyers by floating an all-time high ad rate for the last three matches. Sony Max has floated Rs 10 lakh per 10 seconds for the two semi-finals and final matches, which will be played on May 30, May 31 and June 1 in Mumbai.

This steep hike comes despite a decline in television ratings for the tournament from the explosive start it had witnessed. According to TAM Peoplemeter data, the average rating for IPL has come down to 4.72% from 5.2% during the first two weeks.

Media buyers, while expressing concerns over the astronomical rates Sony Max has floated, admit that the broadcaster would find a select set of takers even at those rates. “We are not surprised that Sony is charging such astronomical rates. There will be a select few advertisers who would want to be visible on the channel, because ratings are expected to be a record high during the semi-finals and final. And since the hype seems set to last through the tournament, Sony is selling aggressively,” a media buying source told ET. Sony Max has kept aside about 200 seconds of inventory for each of the three matches.

If Sony does manage to close spot deals at Rs 10 lakh, it will better ESPN-Star Sports’ (ESS) existing record. Last September, ESS had sold 10-second spots for the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup final at rates ranging between Rs 7.5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh — and that was just for the final India-Pakistan match.

Sony Entertainment Television (SET) president Rohit Gupta said the broadcaster was close to signing up a couple of advertisers at rates ‘almost’ nearing the Rs 10-lakh slab.

Declining to give out the names of the interested advertisers, Mr Gupta said: “Our inventory is limited to about 600-650 seconds for the semis and finals put together, and we will close deals with three to four advertisers for spot buys.”

Instead of selling 10-second spots on a one-off basis, Sony plans to sell the inventory as a package of 50 or 60 seconds per match. While it began selling spots at Rs 2 lakh for 10-second spots, the broadcaster scaled up the rates to Rs 2.5 lakh per 10 seconds after the first week of the tournament. This was jacked up to Rs 3.5 lakh to Rs 4 lakh for weekend matches.

Sources said Sony Max is on its way to achieve the target of Rs 300 crore from the first IPL season. Last year, Sony had made nearly Rs 400 crore from the World Cup and Champions Trophy put together. Sony has been selling IPL rates at about 30-40% higher that what it sold last year’s World Cup matches. India’s early exit from the World Cup did not help the broadcaster’s cause then.

Sony had acquired IPL broadcast rights along with World Sports Group (WSG) for a steep $918 million. As per the deal, WSG has acquired the global broadcast rights for 10 years. Sony holds the rights for a five-year term.
Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com