The broadcasting rights for the Pakistan Super League (PSL) have been successfully auctioned for a staggering 6.3 billion rupees, marking a notable increase of 2 billion rupees from the previous deal. In the competitive bid for these rights, a private TV channel emerged victorious over three other contenders. Financial bids were opened yesterday, with a reserve price of Rs. 7.358 billion.

During the initial bidding round, the previous rights holder channel proposed a bid of Rs. 5.30 billion, while the state-owned TV channel and the remaining two competitors submitted bids of Rs. 5.17 billion, Rs. 4.40 billion, and Rs. 4 billion, respectively. However, none of the bidders could match the reserve price, leading to a second round of bidding.

The channel with the highest bid in the first round further increased its offer by one billion rupees in the second round, securing the broadcasting rights for the next two years at a total of Rs. 6.30 billion. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has approved this deal, with 95% of the proceeds directed towards the PSL franchises. Consequently, the franchises stand to receive over Rs. 3 billion annually. Additionally, digital rights were separately acquired for Rs. 1.85 billion.

It must be noted that the PCB exclusively permitted companies with their own sports channels or acquired rights from another channel to participate in the bidding process, resulting in four channels vying for the rights. In the event that the reserve price was not met, the PCB retained the authority to reconsider the bids or postpone the entire process. However, a consensus was achieved after a substantial bid in the second round.

Comparatively, the reserve price for the previous contract was Rs. 3.7 billion, with the rights ultimately being sold for Rs. 4.3 billion for a two-year duration. Interestingly, the same entity has once again secured the broadcasting rights. PCB enlisted the services of the international company 'Colganbauer' to conduct a valuation of the media rights of PSL before the bidding, determining a value of 6 billion rupees.