JioStar executives remain bullish, citing strong advertiser demand, new audience targeting capabilities, and real-time measurement innovations.
“We are seeing record demand for IPL this year,” said Ishan Chatterjee, chief business officer, sports revenue, SMB & creator at JioStar. “With the kind of reach and engagement IPL commands, brands are prioritising it as the marquee event in their marketing calendar.”
Last year, IPL reached 525 million viewers on TV and 425 million on digital. With momentum from the India-England series and the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy, JioStar expects total viewership across platforms to cross 1 billion.
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Shashi Sinha, CEO of IPG Mediabrands, sees IPL 2025 as a strong opportunity for advertisers, especially as it aligns with the start of the financial year when brands have fresh marketing budgets. “IPL allows clients to plan budgets early, giving them flexibility. But it’s too soon to make firm revenue projections.”
To be sure, JioStar had initially set a revenue goal of over ₹6,000 crore for IPL 2025 but later lowered it to ₹5,000 crore, the people quoted earlier said on the condition of anonymity.
The combined TV and digital ad revenue of IPL hit a record of close to ₹4,000 crore in 2022, and stood at ₹3,600 crore in 2024, according to industry estimates.
Big spenders and key categories
JioStar has already locked in 12 sponsors, including Campa (Reliance Retail), My11Circle, Opus Paints, State Bank of India, Coca-Cola, Kent Fans, Amfi (Mutual Funds), Amul, Zupee, PhonePe, Jaquar Bath Fittings, and Asian Paints, the people said. More deals are expected to close in the coming weeks.
While Chatterjee declined to confirm specific brands, the people quoted earlier indicate that Campa has signed a ₹200 crore deal, while My11Circle will announce its association today (Monday).
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“Summer is coming early, so categories like beverages, air conditioners, and fans are showing strong interest,” Chatterjee said. “We are also seeing aggressive spending from fintech players, BFSI brands, fantasy gaming platforms, and mobile handset manufacturers.”
Premium ad targeting and innovation
JioStar is betting on new ad innovations to attract brands and enhance audience targeting.
“For the first time, advertisers can combine Connected TV (CTV), iOS, and high-end Android devices in their media plans,” Chatterjee said. “This allows brands to precisely target premium audiences.”
The company is also expanding hyperlocal advertising, enabling businesses like real estate developers and auto dealerships to run campaigns targeted at specific geographic regions.
To improve transparency in digital ad performance, JioStar has partnered with Nielsen for third-party, real-time campaign validation. A Neurons Inc. study found that IPL ads on JioHotstar generate significantly higher engagement than user-generated content platforms or on-demand OTT services.
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JioStar is also pushing for greater participation from small and medium businesses (SMBs). Through a 10-city roadshow, the company is educating local advertisers on IPL’s advertising potential and offering lower entry points to attract regional businesses.
“We want to break the perception that IPL advertising is only for big-budget brands,” Chatterjee said. “With our new targeting solutions, even SMBs can advertise effectively with smaller budgets.”
TV vs digital: Where is the ad money going?
While television remains critical, digital advertising is growing faster, with Connected TV emerging as the most expensive and sought-after inventory.
While declining on exact numbers, Chaterjee said that CTV is fastest growing. “I wouldn’t go into too much details about the exact numbers, but, CTV is a lean back experience. You have a number of different formats on CTV, lots of functionality that is unlocked. So CTV is, of course, our fastest growing consumption surface,” Chatterjee said.
However, advertisers have raised concerns over JioStar’s shift from concurrent viewership reporting (previously on Hotstar) to a ‘views’ metric. The lack of standardization has led to confusion among brands.
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“Unlike when Hotstar reported concurrent viewership figures, the shift to ‘views’ has left advertisers unclear about actual audience size,” said a senior media agency executive. “This has become a key discussion point in negotiations, with brands pushing for more clarity.”
Will paywall hurt viewership?
Adding to these concerns is JioHotstar’s new paywall model for IPL streaming. Reports indicate that users will get four hours of free streaming per month, after which they must subscribe.
Amid worries that it could impact IPL’s overall reach, Chatterjee said the company remains flexible in its approach.
“We are very clear that we will meet our advertiser objectives. That is the number one priority,” he said. “We want users to experience a significant portion of content before reaching a paywall. While we’re still testing and haven’t set a fixed limit, free access will be generous—enough to watch an entire game. This ensures users get a meaningful experience while also aligning with advertiser goals.”
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He pointed out that despite the paywall, India-Pakistan match in the Champions Trophy recorded the highest-ever digital viewership for an India-Pakistan cricket match ever, suggesting that IPL will not suffer a decline in audience.
Will IPL set a new ad revenue record?
While sales momentum is ahead of last year at the same stage, high ad costs, concerns over digital measurement, and the potential impact of the paywall model remain key risks.
JioStar is banking on premium ad innovations, strong demand across categories, and aggressive sales efforts to make IPL 2025 a record-breaking year for ad sales.
“With 16 working days left before IPL 2025, we are very confident this will be the best IPL ever in terms of ad revenue,” Chatterjee said.
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Source:https://www.livemint.com/industry/advertising/jiostar-12-sponsors-ipl-viacom18-the-walt-disney-co-icc-champions-trophy-my11circle-ccoa-cola-sbi-sponsors-11740912267206.html