Star Sports keen to crack non-cricket riddle

[SarFa]

Star India (Star), the big boy
in sports broadcasting,
spent over 90 per cent of
its budget on the king of
sports in India -- cricket --
last year, leaving the rest
for other sports. In a
cricket-crazy nation, that is
what it has been doing for
years.

But in 2014, Star has taken
a surprising gamble. It is
forking out 30 per cent of
its sports broadcasting
budget on sports other than
cricket. It has bet big on
two sports it thinks would
be game-changers --
kabaddi and football.

The popularity of the just-
concluded eight-team Pro
Kabaddi League (PKL), has
taken even the broadcaster
by surprise. Says Sanjay
Gupta, chief operating
officer, Star TV India,
"Except for cricket, there is
no game that has been able
to get the kind of viewers
and engagement levels as
kabaddi.

Business Standard