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Disney-owned Star India terminated its alliance agreement with Zee Entertainment for the $1.5 billion International Cricket Council (ICC) TV rights on June 20, according to a regulatory filing by Zee.

However, the broadcaster has decided to seek damages during the arbitration proceedings, which have not yet been quantified. Star initiated arbitration proceedings against Zee before the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) on March 14.

On Wednesday, Zee stated that Star India terminated the agreement on June 20, citing a breach of contract. The original agreement, signed on August 26, 2022, had positioned Zee as a key player in broadcasting major ICC events, including the ICC Men’s T20 World Cups and the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup.

“During the previous year, Star had sent letters to Zee alleging breach of the Alliance Agreement due to non-payment of dues for the rights fee's first instalment, aggregating to $203.56 million, along with the payment for bank guarantee commission and deposit interest aggregating Rs 17 crore, and financial commitments, including furnishing of corporate guarantee/confirmation as stated in the agreement,” Zee said in its disclosure.

“Based on legal advice, the management believes that Star has not acted in accordance with the Alliance Agreement and has failed to obtain necessary approvals and execute the required documentation and agreements," the company added.

The now-terminated deal would have granted Zee exclusive television rights to major ICC men’s events, including two ICC Men’s T20 World Cups (2024, 2026), the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy (2025), the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup (2027), and key ICC U-19 events.


Star India terminates $1.5 billion worth ICC sub-licensing deal with Zee

International Cricket Council (ICC) has new ambassadors. They are India’s top creators. ICC has collaborated with Meta to engage India's top 500 influencers for the Men's Cricket World Cup 2023. This initiative marks the largest creator campaign for any ICC tournament, as part of their digital content rights partnership. Over 500 creators will be engaged to enhance the digital experience of the tournament.

“Creators today are shaping culture and inspiring everyone around them with their creativity. At the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, we have handpicked 50 unique creators to deliver immersive and behind-the-scenes content to cricket fans globally, on our platforms – Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp and Threads,” said a Meta statement. 

Then there will be the Super 50. Comprising 50 influencers, this group will provide personalized coverage of all 48 matches in the 50 overs tournament. They will delve into pre- and post-match insights, engage with commentators and ambassadors. 

Creators handpicked from various regions of India ensure that each match has a representative in attendance, offering coverage tailored to their city and language.

Apart from ‘Super 50’, where creators have exclusive access to various opportunities, there will be many other creators attending matches and sharing their experience with their audiences. 

“These experiences will bring a flavor of them attending matches, but also of their city and the fan following that exists in their city. This will be shared across their Reels, WhatsApp Channels, Instagram Broadcast Channels and Threads,” said a statement shared by Meta. 

“To give fans unprecedented access to matches, and give creators a chance to be discovered nationally, we’ve kicked off one of our largest creator campaigns for any sporting event to date. We’re glad to work with ICC on this, and to have their support in unlocking the many social and fan experiences on our platforms. At the scale of this campaign, we’re hoping this revolutionizes the way cricket fans engage with the sport,” said Paras Sharma, director and head of content and community partnerships, Meta, India.

The initiative aligns with ICC’s initiative of looking for ways to reach new fans.

“It has been great to work with Meta on this project, to find unique and creative ways to bring the sport we all love to even more people across the world. We can’t wait to see the unique perspectives these creators will bring to the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup and help make it the greatest cricket event ever,” said Finn Bradshaw, ICC head of digital.


ICC and Meta unite: Top 500 Indian influencers as ambassadors for men's cricket World Cup 2023

The International Cricket Council (ICC) and The Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) have launched the inaugural campaign for the Men's ODI World Cup featuring Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan.

For the ‘It Takes One Day’ campaign, ICC and BCCI has worked 85 content creators, from across India, in an event organized by Meta, ICC’s official digital content licensee.

The campaign also JP Duminy, Shubman Gill, Dinesh Karthik, current Men’s Cricket World Cup winning captain Eoin Morgan, Muttiah Muralitharan, Jonty Rhodes and Jemimah Rodrigues. 

The film was developed in partnership with the ICC’s global broadcast partner, Disney Star.

“The ODI format holds an unparalleled significance with its ability to deliver thrilling moments, intense battles, and unpredictable outcomes that will truly captivate fans globally. As we embark on this journey, we are proud to see the launch of the Men’s Cricket World Cup campaign and create real excitement for the event across the world,” said BCCI Secretary Jay Shah.

“We are fully committed to creating a world-class event that will witness the birth of a new generation of heroes, providing fans with unforgettable experiences and we believe the campaign does this. The ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 in India will be a celebration of cricketing excellence, cultural diversity, and the unifying spirit of the game,” he added.

According to ICC Chief Executive, Geoff Allardice, the campaign is a true celebration of One Day International cricket.

“Cricket and cinema are at the heart of Indian psyche, and we’ve infused the two to create appeal far and wide. The involvement of Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan together with an exceptional line-up of cricketers will only help us deepen our connect in this country, while captivating the attention worldwide,” he said. 


ICC and BCCI launch World Cup campaign featuring Shah Rukh Khan

In a rare development, arch rivals in the broadcast industry -- Zee Entertainment Enterprises (Zee) and Disney Star – have forged a strategic licensing agreement this week.

As per the agreement, Disney Star will license the TV broadcasting rights of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s and under-19 global events for a four-year period to Zee for an undisclosed amount. Disney Star will continue to have exclusive digital rights for its digital platform (Disney+ Hotstar). Zee will make staggered annual payments from CY24 onwards.

Disney Star had won the rights to telecast the ICC tournaments till 2027 for $3 billion after a closed-loop bid process last week.

That deal included both digital and television rights for men's and women's ICC tournaments. It was a big plus for Disney Star, which had lost the digital rights of the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the 2023-27 cycle to Viacom18 in June.

The agreement with Disney Star enables Zee to be the exclusive television rights holder of ICC men’s events, including the coveted ICC Men’s T20 World Cup (2024, 2026), ICC Men’s Champions Trophy (2025), and the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup (2027), along with key ICC U-19 events.

What do they gain?

Industry analysts believe this deal will help Zee to up its sports content, attracting more ad and channel subscriptions. Disney Star will mitigate its concentration risk in one market when it comes to TV rights and continue to ride the digital wave.

Sandeep Goyal, managing director, Rediffusion, believes that it almost seems like a pre-mediated deal.

“The understanding could not have been reached overnight. In a way, it’s good for both. Disney Star can now concentrate on the selling of IPL, while Zee can put its fullest might behind the ICC offering. The arrangement is a bit unusual but cooperation is the new norm across industries,” he notes.

The deal comes in at an opportune time for Zee as it awaits the merger with Sony.

Will it generate profits?

“If they (Zee) didn’t have this deal, they would have lost an opportunity to own any major India cricket event rights till 2027,” says Naval Seth, Deputy Head of Research at Emkay Global Financial Services. Seth’s analysis says the expensive value of rights such as these often do not end up bringing in any profit.



<blockquote>“The understanding could not have been reached overnight. In a way, it’s good for both. Disney Star can now concentrate on the selling of IPL, while Zee can put its fullest might behind the ICC offering. The arrangement is a bit unusual but cooperation is the new norm across industries,” says Sandeep Goyal</blockquote>



“The prices for these rights (IPL and ICC India cricket events) have gone through the roof and recovering them would become increasingly difficult for the networks. That explains why Star, which has been dominating the India cricket broadcast space, decided to sell part of its rights,” Seth says.

Brilliant and functional move

Some experts are calling it a brilliant and functional move.

Ramsai Panchapakesan, senior-vice president and national head, integrated media buying at Zenith, says four large networks control the complete live sports (cricket) telecast space and each of them have traditionally been very protective about their rights.

But things are changing. The splitting of IPL rights between two large networks has set a new way of scaling up revenue opportunity as the audience pool will get added, when it comes to more than one network.

This has set an optimistic precedent and only goes to show how recovering the sheer volume of money that is invested in these rights becomes a Herculean task for a single network alone, he said.

“The spread is now larger,” notes Panchapakesan. The Zee-Star deal, according to him, has been further strengthened in terms of exercising the might of big media houses to interplay on their own merits.

Why Zee Network?

Panchapakesan breaks it down.

According to him, among the top four networks, Zee is the only 100 percent Indian broadcasting company with deep roots in the markets. Zee is now the single-largest network after it announced a merger with Sony. This deal only widens the horizons for amplifying reach.

As for Zee, this is a scale-up, Panchapakesan says. “Zee is a pioneer in entertainment and regional content, and, in the recent past, marque live cricket events were the missing piece. GEC can fetch limited vertical growth and there is a need to go for horizontal expansion to grow revenue. Hence, no wonder this alignment is highly strategic and it’s a first-of-its-kind partnership in the Indian media and entertainment landscape,” he says.



<blockquote>“The prices for these rights (IPL and ICC India cricket events) have gone through the roof and recovering them would become increasingly difficult for the networks. That explains why Star, which has been dominating the India cricket broadcast space, decided to sell part of its rights,” says Naval Seth</blockquote>



More collaborations on the anvil

Vinay Hegde, chief buying officer, Madison Media, says that the Star-Zee strategic alliance to telecast all ICC Men’s events for 2024-27 is the first-of-its- kind in India. It is similar to how Sky Sports and BT Sports collaborate to broadcast the Premier League.

"For Star, this could also be to ensure the recovery of their huge investments, including IPL and 2024-27 ICC events, and balance their books. For Zee, which has in the past made some unsuccessful forays into sports, this gives an opportunity to also try and establish themselves as the destination for cricket and maybe more. It’s another avenue to monetise, considering cricket is a religion in India, and will have its dedicated viewers," he adds.

For the viewers, this will now mean adding Zee channels to their bouquet (in addition to Star, Sony, Viacom18), making the viewing pool wider for cricket buffs and might have a positive impact on subscription packages.

"Considering investments in acquiring sports broadcast and streaming rights is increasing, this deal could open the doors for more such strategic collaborations in the future to widen the net, enabling better monetisation to recover the investments," Hegde concludes.

Disney Star had retained the television rights of IPL for Rs 23,575 crore, whereas the digital rights were picked up by Viacom18 for Rs 20,500 crore.

Back to merger: About the Zee-Sony deal

A merger between the Indian unit of Japan's Sony and Zee Entertainment to create a $10 billion TV enterprise will potentially hurt competition by having "unparalleled bargaining power", the Competition Commission of India's (CCI) found in an initial review, according to a report by Reuters.

The country's antitrust watchdog on August 3 sent notice to the two companies stating the watchdog is of the view that a further investigation is merited. The CCI's findings are likely to delay regulatory approval of the deal and could force the companies to propose changes to its structure as well.

Sony and Zee in December 2021 decided to merge their television channels, film assets and streaming platforms to create a powerhouse in a key media and entertainment growth market of 1.4 billion people, challenging rivals like Walt Disney Co.

Zee-Disney Star deal: Is cooperation the new norm?

Disney Star will be the home of all ICC cricket in India for the next four years having won the TV and digital rights to both men’s and women’s global events through to the end of 2027. The International Cricket Council (ICC) confirmed on August 27.

The bid was won by Disney Star two months after it successfully retained the television rights for the Indian Premier League (IPL) for Rs 3,575 crore, for the period between 2023 and 2027.

ICC bid 

Disney Star won the rights following a single round sealed bid process which has yielded a significant uplift to the rights fee from the previous cycle continuing the impressive growth and reach of cricket.

According to sources tracking the development, Disney Star's bid was close to $3 billion, which is equivalent to around Rs 24,000 crore, for both digital and TV rights in the Indian subcontinent region, Moneycontrol reported. 

The decision followed a robust tender, bidding and evaluation process, which started in June 2022.

ICC Chair Greg Barclay said, “We are delighted to continue to partner with Disney Star as the home of ICC cricket for the next four years which has delivered an outstanding result for our Members and will support our ambitious growth plans. They will play a crucial role in the future of our sport and connecting and engaging with more fans than ever before.

K Madhavan, Country Manager and President, Disney Star said, “We are delighted at being able to continue our association with the International Cricket Council (ICC) and look forward to strengthening our partnership by growing the sport of cricket in the years ahead."

Barclay added, “Having a broadcast and digital partner for women’s events in India is a significant step forward in our ambition to accelerate the growth of the women’s game. Disney Star presented impressive plans for the promotion of women’s cricket and they clearly share our vision so I’m incredibly excited by the size of the opportunity ahead." 

“This was an incredibly competitive process, which isn’t surprising given the huge audiences that cricket consistently attracts with more than a billion fans that passionately follow the game globally. I’d like to thank all of the bidders for their interest in and support of cricket.”

Disney Star's $3 bn bid helps it keep ICC rights for India market