ICC sticks with sealed bids for India media rights auction, e-auction only in case of tie

The International Cricket Council (ICC) will be conducting an e-auction for its sale of media rights only if the bidders quote an identical amount in the opening round, industry sources told PTI on Friday.

While Viacom18, which had recently won the IPL India digital rights with a record Rs 23,578 crore bid via an e-auction, had reportedly sought clarifications on certain aspects from the governing body, the ICC will stick to its original plan — sealed bids for round 1 and e-auction for second round only if there is a tie.

In fact, the ICC on Friday, sent out multiple clarifications to the interested parties on the bidding process that will be held in August for the cycle starting 2024.

“The ICC always gets multiple queries on the bidding process and that is nothing new for the global body.

“Clarifications went out to prospective bidders on a range of things as there is a specific time for clarifications. Bids will be proceeding exactly as outlined previously. Sealed bids are considered standard practice to drive the best price for members,” an industry source privy to developments told PTI on condition of anonymity.

It is learnt that the ICC always had the provision for an e-auction but only if there is a second round with initial bids having companies quoting similar amounts.

“If it goes to the second round, it will be an e-auction, a straight shoot-out if there are two similar bids and we need a clear winner,” the source said.

The ICC has three packages – Package ‘A’ is TV Rights, ‘B’ is Digital Rights and ‘C’ is combined TV and Digital Rights. The packages include multiple women’s U-19 T20 World Cups.

In the men’s category, there are two specific durations – four years and eight years.

Bids must be submitted for a four-year term but bidders can also optionally bid for an eight-year term as well. In the women’s category, it is for a four-year term.

“For the first time ever, men’s and women’s rights will be sold separately, and prospective partners can bid for 16 men’s events (over eight years) and six women’s events (over four years), totalling 362 and 103 matches respectively,” the ICC had stated in a release.

Apart from these 465 games, there are additional games in the U-19 men’s and women’s category.

The ITT is for the Indian market only, with up to six packages available across TV only, digital-only or a combination of both.