IPL now makes a play for regional advertisers

Eight sponsorship slots on offer at Rs7 crore apiece for access to matches being played in a particular region

The Indian Premier League (IPL) wants to squeeze more revenue out of the event by going local. Regional advertisers are being offered the option to back the Twenty20 tournament at about one-fourth of the price that top sponsors pay .

· Eight local or regional sponsorships are on offer at Rs7 crore apiece, giving each advertiser access to seven IPL matches being played in their region.

· They will also have access to advertising and branding opportunities in the stadium, backdrop displays, as well as the right to use archival footage of the matches and images of players.

· “The price of a central sponsorship (approximately Rs30 crore), restricts the number of advertisers,” said Sundar Raman, IPL’s chief operating officer.

· The league has received several queries from regional players, who didn’t necessarily have the money for a central sponsorship, but still wanted to be associated with IPL to gain a national footprint.

· The new initiative, however, could be a rival to efforts by individual teams to sell advertising and marketing opportunities.

· Indranil Das Blah, former vice-president, sports, Globosport India Pvt. Ltd said:” It’s a great opportunity for advertisers that are looking to reach a very focused group of regional audiences,” who is now setting up his own sports entertainment practice. “However, this new (IPL) package could compete with the existing inventory that teams are trying to sell.”

· Some media buyers and planners who have discussed sponsorship options with clients have been unable to proceed in cases where headline sponsors are in the same business.

· While several clients were keen, “unfortunately there was a clash of interest,” said Hiren Pandit, managing partner, entertainment sports partnerships, GroupM. For instance, one of his clients, a real estate company, couldn’t apply, as the IPL title sponsor is real estate company DLF Ltd, which spent about Rs 200 crore for the privilege over a period of five years.

· Selling propositions are similar—regional and franchisee sponsorship options include in-stadia branding and the use of player images, thus offering advertisers a wider option in terms of deals at different levels of remuneration.

· The Chief marketing officer, Utkarsh Singh, puts the ad spend share of regional advertisers in the national market at 40%

· As an advertiser, we would definitely be interested,” said Ravi Chawla, president, lubes business, Gulf Oil Corp. Ltd. “The brand can be tied in quite interestingly with the event and the local connect can be leveraged, especially if the market isn’t strong (for the advertiser).”