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Star to share select IPL matches with DD with an hour’s delay
MUMBAI: For the first time in the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) history, one of the biggest cricketing bonanzas in the world will be aired by India’s public broadcaster Doordarshan too. But there’s a catch. Rightful broadcast rights holder Star India and DD have mutually agreed that select matches out of the 60-odd ones to be played this season will get aired on the pubcaster’s channel with an hour’s delay.
Asked specifically by Indiantelevision.com on the sidelines of an event here on Thursday, Star India chairman and CEO Uday Shankar said, “We will share with DD some highlights and one match every Sunday, apart from select other ones. It’s good for IPL that new audiences (not subscribing to pay TV) will get to sample it.”
According to Shankar, who’s riding a wave of cricket broadcast rights and other successes, Star India will share with DD select matches of the 11th edition of the IPL in 2018 that the pubcaster will air with a delay of 60 minutes. What does it mean? If an IPL match starts at 8 pm, for instance, DD will start airing it 9 pm onwards.
Asked as to why Star, which won the IPL global broadcast rights last year for a period of five years, is willing to share matches with the pubcaster that can probably have advertising revenue implications, Shankar said, “Its more in the nature of providing sampling opportunities to people who don’t have access to pay TV. It’s a mutual agreement [and] if we were not comfortable, we wouldn’t have shared the delayed feed also.”
Though Prasar Bharati CEO Shashi Shekhar Vempati and Minister of Information and Broadcasting Smriti Irani tweeted about the IPL matches to be aired on DD sometime early evening Thursday quoting a media report, Prasar Bharati’s Twitter handle later expanded on the actual deal to say, “To bring Vivo IPL 2018 to a wider audience, Star TV has agreed to share with Prasar Bharati select matches on a one hour deferred live basis with 50-50 revenue sharing.”
Indiantelevision.com also learns from industry and government sources that the as per the Star-Prasar Bharati deal, the matches to be aired on DD will also include the opener, the play-offs and the final. The 2018 edition of the cash-rich league will feature 12 matches that will be played at 4 pm and 48 matches that will start at 8 pm. According to details available, the matches will be played at nine venues over 51 days starting 7 April 2018.
Though Star was not forthcoming on the issue, Indiantelevision.com also learns from industry sources that DD will do the ad-sales and marketing of the matches to be aired on pubcaster’s TV channel and share the revenue with the rights holder in the ratio of 50:50. Star, while quoting government norms on mandatory sharing of sporting events with DD, earlier had pushed for a revenue share in the ratio of 75:25 in its favour.
For several months, officials of the MIB and Prasar Bharati and executives of Star India were locked in a series of hard bargaining over the finer details of match sharing with the pubcaster. Even as the finer points of sharing were being negotiated, the Indian cricket board wrote a letter to the MIB two days back expressing concerns over various government nods not forthcoming needed to telecast IPL matches live. The MIB has given its nod for temporary live uplinking of the IPL’s 11th edition, whose inaugural ceremony will be held on 6 April 2018.
In September last year, Star India had won the global television and digital rights to IPL for the next five seasons for approximately $ 2.5 billion or Rs 16,347.50 crore. Until 2017, Sony Pictures Networks India had held the television broadcasting rights of IPL for 10 years (since 2008).
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Star India beats Sony, Jio to win media rights for BCCI’s home matches
IPL 2018 gets a makeover with Star India
Comment: Does Star stand to gain or lose by sharing IPL with DD?
NEW DELHI: Hamdard Laboratories gathered a cross-section of India’s achievers in New Delhi on Friday, handing out the Hakeem Abdul Hameed Excellence Awards to figures who have left their mark across healthcare, education, sport, public service and the arts.
The ceremony, attended by minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth and senior officials from the ministry of Ayush, celebrated individuals whose work blends professional success with a sense of public purpose. It was as much a roll call of achievement as it was a reminder that influence is not measured only in profits or podiums, but in people reached and lives improved.
Among the headline awardees was Alakh Pandey, founder and chief executive of PhysicsWallah, recognised for turning affordable digital learning into a mass movement. On the sporting front, Arjuna Awardee and kabaddi player Sakshi Puniya was honoured for her contribution to the game and for pushing women’s participation onto bigger stages.
The cultural spotlight fell on veteran lyricist and poet Santosh Anand, whose songs have echoed across generations of Hindi cinema. At 97, Anand accepted the honour with characteristic humility, reflecting on a life shaped by perseverance and hope.
Healthcare honours spanned both modern and traditional systems. Manoj N. Nesari was recognised for strengthening Ayurveda’s place in national and global health frameworks. Padma shri Mohammed Abdul Waheed was honoured for his research-backed work in Unani medicine, while padma shri Mohsin Wali received recognition for his long-standing contribution to patient-centred care.
Education and social development also featured prominently. Padma shri Zahir Ishaq Kazi was honoured for decades of work in education, while former Meghalaya superintendent of Police T. C. Chacko was recognised for public service. Goonj founder Anshu Gupta received an award for his dignity-centred rural development initiatives, and the Hunar Shakti Foundation was honoured for empowering women and young girls through skill development.
The Lifetime Achievement Award went to former IAS officer Shailaja Chandra for her long career in public healthcare and governance, particularly in the traditional systems under Ayush.
Speaking at the event, Hamdard chairman Abdul Majeed said the awards were a tribute to those who combine excellence with empathy. “These awardees reflect Hakeem Sahib’s belief that healthcare, education and public service must ultimately serve humanity,” he said.
Minister Seth struck a forward-looking note, saying India’s young population gives the country a unique opportunity to become a global destination for learning, health and wellness by 2047.
The ceremony also featured the trailer launch of Unani Ki Kahaani, an upcoming documentary starring actor Jim Sarbh, set to premiere on Discovery on 11 February.
Instituted in memory of Unani scholar and educationist Hakeem Abdul Hameed, the awards have grown into a national platform that celebrates those building a more inclusive and resilient India. For one evening at least, the spotlight was not just on success, but on service with substance.
