Pan-Asian sports broadcaster ESPN Star Sports has sold out its advertising inventory for its Indian coverage of the Wimbledon tennis championships and could earn revenues of Rs50 million (€710,000/$893,000) from the tournament, according to Indian Television.
The website said advertisers were paying between Rs15,000 and Rs25,000 per slot.
Up to 140 hours of live coverage is planned for the ongoing championships across the Star Sports and ESPN channels.
“Tennis has been quite a popular sport among its target audience in India and Wimbledon has been one of the most followed tournaments for a long time,” Nikhil Rangnekar, chief executive of media and marketing company Spatial Access, said.
“I think we are seeing the reflection in television ratings as well and given the fact that it’s a two-week long tournament, played during prime time for India, it’s a viable opportunity for marketers.”
Neo Sports, the pay-television broadcaster owned by the Nimbus Communications agency, earned advertising revenues of Rs45 million for its coverage of the recently-concluded 2012 French Open, the report added.