ESS bags ECB’s broadcast rights for 5 years

ESPN STAR Sports will broadcast more than 200 days of live international cricket action from the England and Wales Cricket Board, including 34 Test matches, 54 one-day internationals and nine Twenty20 games

ESPN STAR Sports (ESS), which launched a dedicated cricket channel, STAR Cricket, a little while ago, is looking to buy more and more cricket properties. The channel has tied up with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and announced a new five-year contract for the exclusive rights to broadcast ECB’s domestic and home international matches across various platforms, including television (inclusive of mobile TV), Internet and radio. Apart from covering the core cricket markets of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, the contract also gives ESS the broadcast rights throughout West Asia, China, Japan and the rest of Asia.

ESS will broadcast more than 200 days of live international cricket action from England and Wales, including 34 Test matches, 54 one-day internationals and nine Twenty20 games. Over the next five years, all the Test-playing nations will be competing in England, with the Indian team slated to visit in 2011. In addition, ESS will broadcast ECB’s top-class domestic cricket, including the popular Twenty20 Cup, Provident Trophy, England Lions matches and the Pro40 series.

Talking about the development, RC Venkateish, MD, ESPN says, “This is a very significant acquisition, considering that India-England cricket matches have always generated huge interest in the Indian subcontinent. The excitement generated by the on-going series in England aptly demonstrates this fact.”

With this partnership, ESS has further strengthened its position. Late last year, ESS was awarded the exclusive global telecast rights by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for all its events from 2007 to 2015.

ECB chairman David Morgan says, “The ECB is delighted to renew its partnership with ESPN STAR Sports, which has helped further extend the reach of the game by continually setting new standards in cricket presentation and distribution.”

Manu Sawhney, executive vice-president, programming and marketing, ESS, says, “We are delighted to further extend our decade-long relationship with the ECB for another five years, and will continue to provide the best international cricket action to fans across Asia.”

After the ongoing India-England series, ESS will continue to have a packed cricket calendar with the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 starting on September 11. ESS and its affiliates have already secured global coverage of the inaugural edition of the tournament, and more than 110 countries are slated to showcase the tournament, spanning North America, the Caribbean, Africa, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Greece, Cyprus and Mauritius. This will be followed by India’s tour to Australia later in the year and the Asia Cup.