The coming season of the Indian Premier League cricket tournament may not be screened at multiplex cinema halls.
Said an official of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), on condition of anonymity: “There has been no decision yet. The matches may not be screened this year.” Though BCCI will not say so formally, the problem is former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi, removed after various questions were raised on the way he managed the outfit. All contracts he had signed are being examined, among these the worldwide Rs 330-crore theatrical rights contract signed with Entertainment and Sports Direct in 2009, for 10 years.
As the tournament progresses, said the BCCI functionary, they may possibly look at screening the quarter-finals, semi-finals and the final to select multiplex and single-screen theatres. IPL is scheduled to start on April 8, a week after the curtains come down on the ongoing World Cup tourney.
Sources in the film exhibition business said the BCCI was yet to make any formal communication. “ From the meeting we have had, the matches will not be telecast this year,” said a UFO Moviez company official. UFO Moviez had the rights for satellite transmission of IPL matches in theatres and, in last year’s tournament, had shown these in around 700 screens across India.
“We have started getting corporate queries for IPL, but since we did not have any answer from BCCI on this, we have not done any packages,” said a senior official from Cinemax.
IPL matches in theatres last year got lukewarm response, with most operators having failed to break even. According to multiplex owners, the occupancy rate for these matches were 15-20 per cent, with the semi-finals and finals getting a little better response due to the 3D-viewing.
Typically, during the IPL season, Bollywood does not take chances with big-budget films but takes advantage of the dry spell to release a few small and medium budget films. This year, however, April and May are packed with two-three releases every week.
Said an official of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), on condition of anonymity: “There has been no decision yet. The matches may not be screened this year.” Though BCCI will not say so formally, the problem is former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi, removed after various questions were raised on the way he managed the outfit. All contracts he had signed are being examined, among these the worldwide Rs 330-crore theatrical rights contract signed with Entertainment and Sports Direct in 2009, for 10 years.
As the tournament progresses, said the BCCI functionary, they may possibly look at screening the quarter-finals, semi-finals and the final to select multiplex and single-screen theatres. IPL is scheduled to start on April 8, a week after the curtains come down on the ongoing World Cup tourney.
Sources in the film exhibition business said the BCCI was yet to make any formal communication. “ From the meeting we have had, the matches will not be telecast this year,” said a UFO Moviez company official. UFO Moviez had the rights for satellite transmission of IPL matches in theatres and, in last year’s tournament, had shown these in around 700 screens across India.
“We have started getting corporate queries for IPL, but since we did not have any answer from BCCI on this, we have not done any packages,” said a senior official from Cinemax.
IPL matches in theatres last year got lukewarm response, with most operators having failed to break even. According to multiplex owners, the occupancy rate for these matches were 15-20 per cent, with the semi-finals and finals getting a little better response due to the 3D-viewing.
Typically, during the IPL season, Bollywood does not take chances with big-budget films but takes advantage of the dry spell to release a few small and medium budget films. This year, however, April and May are packed with two-three releases every week.
