Sports
Sports Tak Leads Live Viewership During India vs Pakistan Clash
Sports Tak, India’s leading digital cricket platform, delivered a commanding performance during the high-voltage India vs Pakistan encounter, emerging as the clear leader in live concurrent viewership among major cricket platforms.
Post first innings, Sports Tak recorded 42,000 concurrent viewers, well ahead of competitors. ESPNcricinfo registered 17,000 concurrent viewers, while Cricbuzz recorded 1,900 during the same time window.
On the biggest stage of the tournament, Sports Tak outperformed competing platforms by a wide margin, reinforcing its position as a leading destination for live cricket coverage and real-time analysis.
Through fast-paced live shows, expert insights, and fan-first formats, Sports Tak continues to convert marquee matches into high-engagement digital moments. The India vs Pakistan clash once again highlighted the platform’s ability to capture peak audience attention.
The surge in live viewership also delivered strong visibility for partner brands, placing them at the centre of premium cricket content consumed in real time.
With the tournament gaining momentum, Sports Tak is set to build further scale, bringing fans closer to the action and driving impactful reach during the biggest matches of the season.
Sports
IPL 2026 shows widening gap between CTV and TV advertising trends
Ecom leads CTV with 39 per cent, 30 plus shared categories, distinct advertiser mix.
MUMBAI: If cricket is the same on every screen, advertising clearly isn’t. A new analysis by TAM Sports reveals a widening gap between Connected TV (CTV) and linear television advertising during IPL 2026, with brands and categories playing very different innings across platforms. On CTV, digital-first categories dominated. E-commerce media, entertainment and social media led with a commanding 39 per cent share, followed by e-commerce services at 11 per cent. Smartphones and cars each accounted for 6 per cent, while air conditioners contributed 4 per cent highlighting a strong tilt towards tech-led and high-consideration categories.
Linear TV, in contrast, leaned heavily into mass-market staples. Mouth fresheners topped the chart with 14 per cent, closely followed by e-commerce services at 13 per cent. Financial institutions held a 6 per cent share, while paints and e-commerce wallets each stood at 5 per cent, reflecting a more traditional advertising mix.
The divergence extends to advertisers as well. On CTV, Star India (JioHotstar) led with a dominant 39 per cent share, followed by Google at 17 per cent. Havells India, Renault India and Reliance Consumer Products rounded out the top five with smaller shares. Linear TV saw Google in the lead at 12 per cent, with Reliance Consumer Products at 10 per cent, followed by Vishnu Packaging and Havells India at 6 per cent each, and K P Pan Foods at 5 per cent.
Despite these differences, there is some overlap. The study identified 30 plus common categories and 25 plus common advertisers across both platforms, based on 22 matches analysed. Shared categories included e-commerce media, e-commerce services, mouth fresheners, paints and cars, while common advertisers featured Star India (JioHotstar), Google and Reliance Consumer Products.
Yet, exclusivity tells the sharper story. CTV saw over 20 exclusive categories and 30 plus unique advertisers, including smartphones, credit cards, fast food outlets and hotels, with brands such as Renault India, Tata Motors and Voltas featuring prominently. Linear TV, meanwhile, had 15 plus exclusive categories and 20 plus advertisers, including chocolates, jewellery, perfumes and mortgage loans, with names like Cadbury India, Skoda Auto and Amul in the mix.
The findings point to a structural shift in how advertisers are approaching big-ticket sporting events. While linear TV continues to deliver scale and familiarity, CTV is emerging as a playground for digital-native categories and more targeted brand storytelling.
In the IPL’s advertising game, it seems the format may be the same but the strategy is anything but uniform.
