Chinese state broadcaster CCTV will provide “unprecedented” coverage of the Chinese Basketball Association’s top league during the 2012-13 season, according to the Infront Sports & Media agency.
Infront, the association’s global marketing and media distribution partner, said that the CCTV-5 sports channel would broadcast seven games per week – four live games and three delayed games.
Infront has also agreed rights deals for the league for the 2012-13 season – which begins this weekend – with more than 20 regional channels in China, and is in negotiations with a number of other regional broadcasters.
Infront said that growing domestic television exposure for the league was coming on the back of its efforts to improve the quality of television productions of CBA matches. Infront and the CBA this season introduced a production manual for the league’s 14 host broadcasters in an effort to ensure a consistently high level of production.
Infront is distributing a 30-minute programme summarising each round of CBA matches for the first time this season. It has been taken up by over 20 channels.