Coverage of the first ten matches and opening gala of the ICC Cricket World Cup have been watched by 127 million people on India’s cable and satellite, equating to 64% of the total cable and satellite TV audience in the country – according to research agency TAM.
These initial matches have attracted more viewers in India than the last Cricket World Cup, held in 2007 - especially when it comes to those tuning into matches in which the national team is not playing. The cumulative television rating (TVR) for non-India games viewed on the ESPN, Star Cricket and Star Sports (ESS channels) has reached 13.15, representing a 14% rise on 2007, according to TAM figures.
The live streaming served up on www.espnstar.com/cwclive has also gone down well, with 6.9 million video streams provided up until 1 March. The exhilarating India v England fixture, which ended in a rare draw, resulted in 1.45 million video streams alone. ESS also claims over five million unique visitors have enjoyed matches on its website since the beginning of the Cricket World Cup.
“The ratings for the non-India matches are very healthy and point towards increasing viewer interest in the tournament as a whole. Credit must also be given to the teams who are dishing out such exciting fare and our advertisers are lapping it up,” said Sanjay Kailash, executive vice president, Ad Sales and New Media, ESPN Software India.
“We expect the trend to continue as the tournament progresses towards the second phase as teams get into top gear to qualify for the knock-out stages,” he added.
These initial matches have attracted more viewers in India than the last Cricket World Cup, held in 2007 - especially when it comes to those tuning into matches in which the national team is not playing. The cumulative television rating (TVR) for non-India games viewed on the ESPN, Star Cricket and Star Sports (ESS channels) has reached 13.15, representing a 14% rise on 2007, according to TAM figures.
The live streaming served up on www.espnstar.com/cwclive has also gone down well, with 6.9 million video streams provided up until 1 March. The exhilarating India v England fixture, which ended in a rare draw, resulted in 1.45 million video streams alone. ESS also claims over five million unique visitors have enjoyed matches on its website since the beginning of the Cricket World Cup.
“The ratings for the non-India matches are very healthy and point towards increasing viewer interest in the tournament as a whole. Credit must also be given to the teams who are dishing out such exciting fare and our advertisers are lapping it up,” said Sanjay Kailash, executive vice president, Ad Sales and New Media, ESPN Software India.
“We expect the trend to continue as the tournament progresses towards the second phase as teams get into top gear to qualify for the knock-out stages,” he added.
