MxMIndia

Tag: Srinivasan

  • Analysts from MPA assess sports ecosystem in latest report: Asia Pacific Sports In The Age Of Streaming

    Market value for sports media rights to soar 22% in APAC, notes MPA report

    By A Correspondent

     

    The market value of sports media rights is set to reach US$5.0 billion in Asia Pacific ex-China this year, according to ‘Asia Pacific Sports In The Age Of Streaming’, a new report published by Media Partners Asia (MPA). The value represents a 22 per cent increase from 2017, lifted by rising demand for digital rights and market growth in India and Australia as well as this year’s Fifa World Cup. While sports remains the last bastion for pay-TV operators combating subscriber churn, OTT delivery is becoming the main driver of rights inflation, opening up fresh opportunities for rights-holders while adding new layers of complexity to negotiations and deals.

     

    “In our view, the value of sports media rights across TV has probably peaked in Asia Pacific with the notable exception of India, where the market for linear channels remains robust and scalable,” said MPA Senior Analyst Srivathsan AR, the report’s main author. “The proliferation of broadband is fueling the growth of online video platforms, with a number of players investing aggressively in sports rights.”

     

    Recent sports rights auctions suggest that online platforms currently contribute between 10-25 per cent of the media rights value for a sports franchise, MPA analysis concluded. The value of bundled broadcast and online rights today is typically anchored to a land-grab by media companies, telcos and digital platforms vying for pole position in a green-field segment with an attractive consumer proposition. Debates over the value of digital monetization relative to TV will only get more involved and complex over time.

     

    The market for digital sports in Asia Pacific is broadly divided between broadcasters with scalable distribution that are investing in digital rights for new and emerging platforms; and telcos and pure-play digital platforms that are monetizing tentpole rights through subscription, advertising and commerce.

     

    The first group includes Star India, which has established new benchmarks for digital-based sports consumption with Hotstar, its direct-to-consumer entertainment and sports platform that reached more than 200 million people during this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament. BeIn Media Group, meanwhile, operates Asia Pacific’s largest pan-regional OTT sports platform, BeIn Connect, with a footprint covering Australia, Hong Kong, Malaysia, New Zealand, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.

     

    Added Srinivasan: “We expect bidding for live rights to escalate across the region over the next two years as sports-based digital platforms rive viewership, especially in large ad-dominated growth economies such as India and Indonesia as well as big mature markets such as Australia and Japan… Many franchises share free highlights and archive content, although others are looking at more direct monetization, pioneered by the NBA League Pass,” Srivathsan said. “These services offer one-to-one and customized fan relationships that can drive engagement and merchandize sales. At the same time, small markets which are currently grouped alongside major markets in media deals may see better representation and consistency in delivery. NBA has also shown that a readymade service can help distribution partners augment their own packages rather than disrupt existing deals, although some leagues and federations may bypass traditional TV partners with their own direct-to-consumer plays.”

     

     

  • Vikatan Hackathon is a structured prototyping event spread over a weekend, approximately 50 hours

    Chennai ready to host Vikatan Hackathon in September

    By A Correspondent

     

    Vikatan Hackathon is a CSR event organized by the Ananda Vikatan Group as part of its initiatives to reinvent its connect and engagement with the communities that it serves. In its 90th Year, Ananda Vikatan through this Hackathon aims to come up with innovative solutions that intersect content, community and connections (leveraging technology) to improve lives.

     

    Speaking about the hackathon,. Srinivasan, Managing Director, Vikatan Group said “Communities of like-minded people always experience everyday problems that hold them back from being productive and make them do repetitive tasks. After all, how can one expect to follow the same routine and expect different results every time? Communities bear citizens who are learning every day and amassing wealth of knowledge, from mistakes made, to solutions with ingenuity, sometimes even without knowing it. In fact, one man’s garbage is another man’s treasure. Content is being generated more than ever before. From the government to welfare organisations to media to corporate, more and more content is being generated every minute and much of this is available in public domain, seeking users (after all, why collect data unless it can be of use to someone?) How can technology connect the dots of community need and content which contextually seek one another, in fulfilling the stated and unstated needs of the common man? Vikatan Hackathon is all about lifting these communities with the collective knowledge that it holds individually using technology.”

     

    Vikatan Hackathon is a structured prototyping event spread over a weekend, approximately 50 hours – starting from Friday evening and ends on Sunday evening during which selected individuals/ teams ideate and build a prototype for a solution that solves one of the challenges in education, agriculture, environment, empowerment & employability and civic life & community power.

     

    This hackathon acts not just as a platform for young budding entrepreneurs to exhibit their product, connect with the community and build it to potential business but also gives them a life time opportunity to meet, interact and get mentored by some of the biggies of the tech and business world as well as leverage from the combined strength of the various partners like Nasscom, Startupcentre, Thoughtworks who are on board. The top three teams to build elegant solutions win cash prizes worth Rs 1.5 Lakhs too.

     

    The Jury comprises eminent personalities like Padma Chandrasekaran an Angel Investor, M M Murugappan,Vice Chairman-Murugappa Group and A D Padmasingh Isaac, Chairman & MD-Aachi Group. Leading business professionals like C K Ranganathan – Founder & Chairman – Cavincare, Suresh Sambandam, Founder & CEO – Orangescape, S Abhaya Kumar ED – Strides Shasun Pharmaceuticals, Murugavel Janakiraman Founder & CEO – Matrimony.com, Sameer Mehta, Director – Mehta Hospital to name a few will serve as mentors who will be fuelling the young minds with quality inputs nurturing and supporting them to become successful entrepreneurs.

     

    Vikatan Hackathon is scheduled from Sep 23rd to Sep 25th at Thoughtworks, Ascendas, Taramani, Chennai.