SLC TV bids close on June 15
Bids for international media rights contract for Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) for the three years starting from April 2020 is due on June 15.
The board is now selling media rights as one package combining television, radio and digital platforms as opposed to their previous attempt to sell it as two packages – one for television and radio and another for digital platforms. The package covers national team cricket matches taking place in Sri Lanka and covering all territories outside Sri Lanka.
SLC is selling media rights for the next three years after their seven-year agreement with Sony Pictures Networks (SPN) India Private (formerly Ten Sports) ended on March 31, 2020.
“We have fixed June 15 for bid submission,” said Sri Lanka Cricket CEO Ashley de Silva.
However, given the global health crisis, they will have to allow the bidders to submit their bids either through courier or online, contrary to the usual practice of submitting it by hand.
“As most of these bidders are based outside of the country, we will have to give those two options and we are in the process of taking Sports Ministry approval,” De Silva added.
The new cricket cycle includes 12 international tours including an ODI tri-series involving Sri Lanka, Ireland and Australia which has been scheduled for January 2023.
Sri Lanka’s bilateral tour calendar includes one full series during the cycle – that of Australia, who are scheduled to arrive in the island in June 2022 to play 2 Tests, 5 ODIs and 3 T20Is. The new cycle was to kick-off with South Africa’s tour of Sri Lanka in May/June this year but the tour has been rescheduled for November 2021 due to the current global health crisis.
Sri Lanka Cricket’s international media rights have historically been acquired by Indian broadcasters, with that market accounting for most of their value. Pay-television broadcaster Sony Pictures Networks is the current rights-holder, in a seven-year deal running from 2013 to 2020.
SLC awarded the production rights for the next three years to Innovative Product Group (IPG) headed by Dubai-based Indian Anil Mohan following a successful bid they made in February but was forced to re-tender their media rights (TV/Radio and Digital Broadcast rights) following unsatisfactory offers.
Unlike in previous years, SLC floated three separate tenders for TV and radio broadcast rights, TV production rights and digital broadcast rights early this year. This was the first time SLC floated digital rights separately.
This decision seems to have cost the Board dearly. Apart from the lack of transparency, another concern of Sony Pictures, who pulled out from the process, is the separation of digital rights from TV/ Radio broadcasting rights.
The bifurcation of rights – TV/Radio and Digital Rights – resulted in SLC receiving below par offers with the highest bid for TV/Radio rights of US$ 16 million and digital rights fetching only US$ 6 million.
Sony is among those who have shown interest in buying the media rights.
| TOUR SCHEDULE 2020-2023 | |
| Year 2020 Tour 1: 24 June to 11 July: India tour of Sri Lanka (3 ODIs, 3 T20s) Tour 2: 23 July to 12 Tour 3: 23 September to 30 September: Zimbabwe tour of Sri Lanka (3 ODIs) Year 2021 Tour 5: 25 April to 29 April: Ireland tour of Sri Lanka (1 Test) Tour 6:16 July to 22 July: India tour of Sri Lanka (3 T20s) Tour 7: 1 August to 16 August: Tour 8: 3 October to 7 October:Scotland tour of Sri Lanka (3 T20s) Tour 9: Nov/Dec: South Africa tour of Sri Lanka (3 ODIs, 3 T20s) Year 2022 Tour 11:22 July to 16 August: Pakistan tour of Sri Lanka (2 Tests, 3 ODIs) Tour 12: 28 October to 9 November: West Indies tour of Sri Lanka (2 Tests) Year 2023 |