MAM
Nissan inks eight-year sponsorship deal with ICC through 2023
MUMBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has roped in Nissan Motor Company in a long-term partnership deal through 2023.
Nissan will be the global sponsor of cricket’s international tournaments, including the ICC Cricket World Cup, ICC Champions Trophy and ICC World Twenty20, as well as Under 19 and Women’s Cricket and qualifying events. Nissan will have extensive in-venue activation, broadcast and digital rights at all ICC events.
The ICC partnership is an expansion of Nissan’s ongoing international sports sponsorship strategy.
“Innovation that excites is what Nissan does. As partners with the ICC we will introduce ways to enrich the experience of cricket fans through our rights with the global Trophy Tour, the International Flag Bearer Program and new live event experiences. We’re excited to be part of the global cricketing family and to be involved in some of the world’s most prestigious and popular tournaments. Our aim is to share with cricket fans around the world the excitement of the game and our cars. Both are created by people who have passion for what they do,” said Nissan corporate vice president and global head of marketing and brand strategy Roel de Vries.
International Cricket Council CEO David Richardson added, “The ICC is delighted to welcome Nissan on board as a global partner and we look forward to working together for the next eight years to deliver a strong partnership at all ICC global events.”
Nissan India operations president Guillaume Sicard said, “In India, cricket goes way beyond simply being a sport. It is practically a way of life for millions of people. I believe we have found a perfect partner for our brand. Our goal is to achieve five per cent market share in India by 2020 and we have already invested substantially to build one of our most advanced plants and established one of our three global R&D centres. Now, we are keen to repeat in India the sales success we already have in Europe, China, the US, Japan and elsewhere. We are thrilled to bring our passion and unique approach to cricket in India and around the world and are very much looking forward to the ICC World Twenty20 in India in 2016.”
Apart from this ICC partnership, Nissan is associated with other sport events such as the UEFA Champions League, the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Olympic Teams of Great Britain, Mexico and Brazil, the National Collegiate Athletics Association, the Heisman Trophy, City Football Group and GT-R ambassador Usain Bolt.
Digital
Content India 2026 opens with a copro pitch, a spice evangelist and a £10,000 prize for Indian storytelling
Dish TV and C21Media’s three-day summit puts seven ambitious projects before an international jury, and two walk away with serious development money
MUMBAI: India’s content industry gathered in Mumbai this March for Content India 2026, a three-day summit organised by Dish TV in partnership with C21Media, and it wasted no time making a statement. The event opened with a Copro Pitch that put seven scripted and unscripted television concepts before an international panel of judges, and by the end of it, two projects had walked away with £10,000 each in marketing prize money from C21Media to support development and international promotion.
The jury, comprising Frank Spotnitz, Fiona Campbell, Rashmi Bajpai, Bal Samra and Rachel Glaister, evaluated a shortlist that ranged from a dark Mumbai comedy-drama about mental health (Dirty Minds, created by Sundar Aaron) to a Delhi coming-of-age mystery (Djinn Patrol, by Neha Sharma and Kilian Irwin), a techno-thriller about a teenage gaming prodigy (Kanpur X Satori, by Suchita Bhatia), an investigative crime drama blending mythology and modern thriller (The Age of Kali, by Shivani Bhatija), a documentary on India’s spice heritage (The Masala Quest, hosted by Sarina Kamini), a documentary on competitive gaming (Respawn: India’s Esports Revolution, by George Mangala Thomas and Sangram Mawari), and a reality-horror competition merging gaming and immersive fear (Scary Goose, by Samar Iqbal).
The session was hosted by Mayank Shekhar.
The two winners were Djinn Patrol, backed by Miura Kite, formerly of Participant Media and known for Chinatown and Keep Sweet: Pray & Obey, with Jaya Entertainment, producers of Real Kashmir Football Club, also attached; and The Masala Quest, created and hosted by Sarina Kamini, an Indian-Australian cook, author and self-described “spice evangelist.”
The summit also unveiled the Content India Trends Report, whose findings made for bracing reading. Daoud Jackson, senior analyst at OMDIA, set the tone: “By 2030, online video in India will nearly double the revenue of traditional TV, becoming the main driver of growth.” He noted that in 2025, India produced a quarter of all YouTube videos globally, overtaking the United States, while Indians collectively spend 117 years daily on YouTube and 72 years on Instagram. Traditional subscription TV is declining as free TV and connected TV gain ground, forcing broadcasters to innovate. “AI-generated content is just 2 per cent of engagement,” Jackson added, “highlighting the dominance of high-quality human content. The key for Indian media companies is scaling while monetising effectively from day one.”
Hannah Walsh, principal analyst at Ampere Analysis, added hard numbers to the picture. India produced over 24,000 titles in January 2026 alone, with 19,000 available internationally. The country now accounts for 12 per cent of Asia-Pacific content spend, up from 8 per cent in 2021, outpacing both Japan and China. Key exporters include JioStar, Zee Entertainment, Sony India, Amazon and Netflix, delivering over 7,500 Indian-produced titles abroad each year. The top importing markets are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, the United States and the Philippines. Scripted content dominates globally at 88 per cent, with crime dramas and children’s and family titles performing particularly strongly.
Manoj Dobhal, chief executive and executive director of Dish TV India, framed the summit’s ambition squarely. “Stories don’t need translation. They need a platform, discovery, and reach, local or global,” he said. “India produces more movies than any country, our streaming platforms compete globally, and our tech and creators win international awards. Yet fragmentation slows growth. Producers, platforms, and tech move in different lanes. We need shared spaces, collaboration, and an ecosystem where ideas, technology, and people meet. That is why we built Content India.”
The data, the pitches and the prize money all pointed to the same conclusion: India is not waiting for the world to discover its stories. It is building the infrastructure to sell them.
