Advertising rates for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 has slipped to 2024 levels in the first week of the tournament, with media agencies likely spooked by the raids conducted recently by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) over allegations of price fixing and bid rigging. The slide in rates come amidst claims of record viewership during the week.
In the opening week of IPL, ad spends have been closer to last year numbers rather than the expected estimates. Sources told businessline that prices for a 10-second ad for television (SD+HD) closed at ₹15-16 lakh and for CTV (Smart TV) it closed at ₹7 lakh, closer to the ad spends reported last year. In January, sources had reported IPL ad spend to have gone up 9-15 per cent to ₹18-19 lakh for television (₹16.4 lakh). For Smart TV prices were estimated to go up 23-38 per cent to ₹8-9 lakh (₹6.5 lakh).
Talking about the impact of the CCI raids on the IPL ad spends, Lloyd Mathias, Marketer & Business Strategist, said, “Normally, a lot of last-minute deals get struck a few days prior to the IPL. Some advertisers start six months in advance but if there’s a huge demand, a lot of people jump in towards the end. Broadcasters normally keep back 20-25 per cent for last-minute advertisers. So, there’s an impact there. Even the earlier deals can face an impact. There will be a sizeable disruption due to the raids.”
He added that a cricket overload could also be responsible for the lower ad spends, with India winning the Champions Trophy barely two weeks before the IPL.
CCI raids
The fall in ad rates comes close on the heels of the CCI carrying out raids on the offices of global advertising giants such as GroupM, Publicis, Dentsu and Interpublic Group (IPG). Sources said that the raids were triggered when small buyers complained to the CCI alleging that the big agencies were blocking major ad time-slots in bulk.
When asked how long the impact of the raids will persist, Mathias said it depended on the progress of the investigation. Pointing out that the CCI going after advertising companies for cartelisation has never happened before, he said the impact could last longer.
On the other hand, Ajimon Francis, Managing Director at Brand Finance India, said that the raids were a small development in the larger game of ad pricing.
“IPL ad rates are dynamic and fluctuate through the season. Ad spends are done by corporates. So, I don’t see any systemic changes or impact on IPL ad consumption/rates because of the raids,” he said, adding that he had heard a direct buyer quoting rates higher than the reported ₹16 lakh last week.
Despite the flurry caused by the CCI incident, media agencies said that they remain optimistic about IPL reporting some deals coming in over the weekend as well. Mathias added that it is still early stages of the IPL, and there will be heightened activity usually at the tail-end of the league.
