Star India bagged distribution rights for the upcoming NEO sports channels of Nimbus, which has BCCI's telecast rights till 2010.
MUMBAI: Rupert Murdoch's Star India on Tuesday bagged the distribution rights for the upcoming NEO sports channels of Nimbus Sports Broadcast which has BCCI's telecast rights till 2010.
The first of the channels from Nimbus, the cricket-centric NEO Sports, is set to be launched in the last quarter of 2006, which will be followed by NEO Sports Plus, a sports entertainment channel, which is expected to be launched by the end of the year.
Star India has exclusive distribution rights for these two channels till 2010 and will also distribute any future sports channels from the NEO SPORTS stable, the companies said.
"After extensive discussions with a number of interested parties, Nimbus chose Star as its distribution partner based on the broadcaster's market knowledge, quality of management team, distribution reach, and leadership position in India," it said.
"We are deeply impressed not just by the leadership and vision of Star but also its strategy for NEO Sports' comprehensive distribution needs. In the end, it was the strong track record of executing on its strategic plans that persuaded us to appoint Star," Chairman of Nimbus Harish Thawani said.
With nearly 200 days of cricket every year lined up on NEO Sports, of which over 100 days will be live India cricket including all BCCI events and between 3-4 international series every year, NEO Sports is expected to reach a majority of the cable and satellite homes, especially since it will be powered by Star's distribution capabilities, the companies said.
"This deal underscores Star's commitment to distributing the most sought-after content to our viewers throughout India. The robust cricket assets to be showcased on NEO Sports will ensure that our viewers can catch quality broadcasts of their favourite sporting events. NEO's stable of sports channels will complement our existing bouquets, offering more breadth and depth to the viewer," Star Entertainment India Chief Executive Officer Sameer Nair said.
Over the past 12 months, Nimbus Communications Ltd has received over 75 million dollars in funding from 3i and Deutsche Bank, to fuel its growth plans, and is currently not engaged in any dialogue for inducting any new investors, whether financial or strategic, Nimbus added.
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