Three-way race for BCCI media rights

The e-auction for the Board’s media rights commenced on Tuesday and will continue on Wednesday, beginning 11 am.

Five bids were placed during the four-hour auction window on Tuesday.

Reliance Industries Ltd .’s plunge has made the e-auction for BCCI’s media rights for international and domestic cricket to be played in India for the next five years an intriguing affair.

The e-auction, the first digital bidding process in Indian cricket, commenced on Tuesday and will continue on Wednesday with the last bid for the day standing at ₹4,442 crore for the global consolidated rights.

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Interestingly, Reliance — along with the usual suspects Star India Pvt. Ltd. And Sony Pictures Networks Pvt. Ltd. — played it safe as five bids were placed during the four-hour auction window on Tuesday. The first bid of ₹4,176 crore was followed with that of ₹4,201.20 crore, ₹4,244 crore, ₹4,328.25 crore and ₹4,442 crore. The auction will re-commence at 11 am on Wednesday.

102 matches in five years

With the BCCI scheduled to host 102 matches in the five-year cycle, the per-match bid for the last one on Tuesday is marginally higher than that of ₹43.2 crore per match that Star India paid till now.

The e-auction began in the afternoon after the morning session on Tuesday saw the technical evaluation of potential bidders.