70% of IPL’s TV viewership irrelevant to advertisers

The official broadcast and digital streaming partners of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Disney Star and JioCinema, have reported record viewership on both TV and digital platforms, with concurrency of viewership reaching new heights.

JioCinema claims concurrency of 2.2 crore viewers for the Chennai Super Kings vs Rajasthan Royals match, and 2.4 crore viewers during the Chennai Super Kings vs Royal Challengers Bangalore match. Meanwhile, Disney Star has claimed that 26 of the 38 IPL matches on TV have seen 3 crore concurrency.

However, advertisers looking to reach their target audiences need to analyze the data more closely to determine the effectiveness of their media investments.
Advertising categories like automobiles, financial services, fantasy gaming companies, paint, lubricants, cements, and consumer durables generally target the M15 AB Urban demographic, with a focus on the SEC AB Urban Male 15 age group in order to get the best return on their investments. They invest in sports media like cricket to target this demographic effectively. 

A closer look at peak concurrency on television reveals that while the first match between the Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans saw a peak concurrency of 5.5 crore viewers under all target groups( BARC MF 2 Ind Urban Rural), it garnered only 0.99 crore concurrent viewers under the core advertiser- oriented demographic of M 15 AB Urban. Similarly, in match no.6 - Mumbai Indians vs Chennai Super Kings, the peak concurrency under all target groups was 4.9 crore, while the core advertiser- oriented demographic only saw 0.83 crore concurrent viewers.

The average reach for the first 38 matches of IPL 2023 stood at 84 pc under all target groups, but only 15 pc under the advertiser- oriented demographic.

BARC data suggests that the SEC AB Urban Male 15 demographic makes up a mere 14 pc of the total reach, with 87 million viewers in the 2-14 age range, who have very little purchase power.

While overall reach figures for IPL on TV are being touted, the core demographic that matters most to advertisers is only 1/ 7th of the quoted figures. In contrast, up to 80 of IPL viewers on digital platforms are in the Male SEC AB Target segment that advertisers are most interested in reaching. These viewers are often out of their homes during IPL match time, making digital access on mobiles and laptops a more accessible option.

Experts in digital advertising have revealed that IPL on digital platforms provides better reach and technology to target the prime sports demographic with minimal spillage as compared to television.

While overall viewership figures for IPL may be impressive, advertisers need to analyze the data more closely to determine the effectiveness of their media investments and ensure they are reaching their target audiences effectively.