Sony India acquires ACC cricket rights in an eight-year deal
Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) has signed an eight-year cricket broadcasting rights deal with the Asian Cricket Council.
The deal includes all editions of the Men’s and Women’s Asia Cups, Under-19 Men’s and Women’s Asia Cups, and the Men’s and Women’s Emerging Teams Asia Cups.
The deal was sealed after a bidding process and the winning bid represents a 70% increase in the value of the rights, the ACC said without sharing the bid price. Citing anonymous sources, multiple Indian media sources reported the value of the contract at $170 million.
The substantial increase in the value of rights “will enable the ACC to channel significant resources into grassroots programs, infrastructure development and talent pathways, especially for member countries,” the organization said.
“Congratulations to the ACC for conducting a fair and transparent bidding process for the rights to the ACC tournaments! We are excited to bring these action-packed tournaments, which will also include matches from India and Pakistan, to our viewers for the next eight years,” said SPNI’s MD & CEO, Gaurav Banerjee.
Sony was looking to expand its TV and streaming business in India through a merger deal with Zee Entertainment Enterprises. But that deal collapsed in January after more than two years of negotiations. This has led mid-sized TV operators in India to look for new ways to expand their scale.
Cricket rights in particular are a crucial battleground for broadcasters and streamers, as they generate large audiences and drive advertising and subscriber acquisition.
India’s anti-monopoly regulator earlier this year raised concerns about a concentration of cricket rights in the hands of Reliance Industries (Viacom18, Jio) and Disney. Despite the concerns, these two companies have received regulatory approval to merge. Indian media sources said Jio and Disney had not submitted bids for the ACC rights.
Earlier this year, SPNI acquired the television and digital rights to all New Zealand men’s and women’s cricket matches in India and related territories for the next seven years. The deal is valid from May 1, 2024 to April 30, 2031 and includes India’s tours of New Zealand in the summers 2026-27 and 2030-31, as well as all other bilateral Tests, ODIs and T20Is played in New Zealand during the summer of 2026-2027 and 2030-31. period. All matches will be broadcast via SPNI sports channels and streamed on SonyLIV.
