Pay-television broadcaster Star India has been awarded audio-visual production services rights for the Indian Premier League following its acquisition last year of the global television and digital rights to the Twenty20 cricket competition.
Star was awarded the production rights by the Board of Control for Cricket in India. The deal also covers the 2018-19 season of BCCI domestic cricket.
Indian newspaper The Hindu said that Star and the IMG agency were the only two interested parties, with Star having picked up the rights for approximately Rs95m (€1.2m/$1.5m). The Hindu noted that it will mark the first time that the IPL rights-holder will also produce live coverage of the competition.
In September, Star was awarded television and digital rights for the 2018 to 2022 editions of the IPL under an agreement with the BCCI worth Rs164.375bn. Star acquired all rights packages on offer to oust Sony Pictures Networks India as the main broadcaster of the competition.
The BCCI said it reserves the right to extend the production contract for a further edition of the IPL and the 2019-20 domestic season, along with the 2020 edition of the Twenty20 league.