Sports
India-NZ final ad rush: JioStar seeks Rs 50 lakh for 10-sec slot
Advertisers scramble for limited inventory as viewership surges
MUMBAI: With India storming into the final against New Zealand, the advertising race has reached a fever pitch. Broadcaster JioStar, the official media rights holder for the ICC tournament, is quoting nearly Rs 50 lakh for a 10-second advertising spot during the title clash, according to media reports.
The steep rate reflects a simple equation of demand and scarcity. Advertising slots for the final are limited, while brands are eager to ride the wave of surging viewership as the tournament reaches its climax.
Media buyers said the broadcaster is commanding a premium as marketers look to tap into the massive audience expected for the high-stakes encounter. For many advertisers, the final represents a rare opportunity to reach millions of viewers in a single moment of sporting drama.
The surge in interest follows record-breaking digital viewership during the semi-final between India and England. Streaming platform JioHotstar logged a peak of 65.2 million concurrent viewers during the match, setting a global record for the highest live-event concurrency on any digital platform.
The match also drew 619 million views on the platform, making it the most streamed T20 International match in history.
With numbers like these, the final is shaping up not just as a cricket spectacle, but also as one of the most coveted advertising stages in Indian sport. For brands hoping to catch viewers between overs, the price of admission has never been higher.
Sports
JioStar terminates Bangladesh IPL and WPL broadcast rights deals
Payment defaults lead to licence cancellations and potential legal action.
MUMBAI: When the money stops flowing in cricket’s biggest cash cow, even the sub-licence holders can find themselves suddenly bowled out. JioStar India Private Limited has terminated its Bangladesh sub-licence agreements for the Indian Premier League (IPL) and Women’s Premier League (WPL) after the counterparty, Excel Lead IT Solutions FZ-LLC (holding company of broadcaster T-Sports), failed to clear outstanding dues.
The agreements, originally signed with Viacom18 (now part of JioStar) and later novated to Excel Lead, covered digital media rights for the IPL and WPL in Bangladesh for the 2023–27 seasons. In early January 2026, JioStar issued a demand notice for unpaid amounts related to the IPL 2025 and WPL 2025 seasons. Despite providing full access to matches and allowing complete commercial exploitation, the dues remained unpaid even after the cure period expired.
As a result, all licensed rights have automatically reverted to JioStar. The company has demanded immediate payment of all outstanding dues along with overdue interest and costs, and has instructed Excel Lead (T-Sports) to immediately cease any broadcast, streaming, promotion or exploitation of the rights in Bangladesh. Any continued use would constitute unauthorised exploitation.
JioStar is also considering legal proceedings, including interim and injunctive relief, to protect the commercial value of these high-profile cricket properties.
In a separate development, JioStar has invoked arbitration against Green Bean Sports Marketing (an affiliate of Gazi TV Bangladesh) over a sublicensing agreement for IPL television media rights in Bangladesh for the 2023–27 seasons. The agreement was terminated in January 2025 due to contractual breaches and payment issues.
Industry sources say JioStar remains confident in the judicial process and is determined to recover all outstanding amounts, including interest and litigation costs, in full.
The developments highlight a growing zero-tolerance approach by rights holders towards payment defaults and unauthorised exploitation in South Asia’s lucrative sports media market, where marquee cricket properties continue to command premium valuations.
In the high-stakes game of cricket broadcasting, it seems JioStar has decided that when payments don’t come, the game stops and the rights go back to the rightful owner.
