FanCode partners with DD Sports for TV broadcast of the India tour of West Indies

Live content, sports statistics and e-commerce marketplace FanCode has announced that DD Sports will be its exclusive TV partner for the India tour of West Indies series, to build accessibility for the tour for television viewers across the country. The tour, scheduled to begin at the end of July, will be the first India-away series to be hosted exclusively on DD Sports in the last 15 years.

In April 2021, FanCode became the first-ever digital platform to sign a four-year deal with Cricket West Indies for the exclusive broadcast rights for almost 150 international and 250 domestic cricket matches of the Caribbean until 2024.

The deal includes the upcoming India’s tour of the West Indies consisting three ODIs and five T20Is, which will be exclusively live-streamed on its app.

To ensure that the television-only audiences do not miss out on the tour, it has offered TV rights to DD Sports to now be available on all cable and DTH platforms, apart from DD’s free dish.

Mayank Kumar Agrawal, CEO, Prasar Bharati said, “Cricket is the undisputed leader in sports and entertainment in India. Even in the fast-growing digital age, there continues to be a significant market and audience for sports consumption on television, and we are glad to bring the upcoming India tour of the West Indies to the masses through DD Sports. While FanCode is building a unique digital experience for sports fans, their extension of rights to DD Sports will mean wider accessibility to all sports fans for the series.”

Prasana Krishnan, co-founder of the firm added, “Our single-most objective is to provide superlative user experience and solve for accessibility gaps fans witness in sports consumption and experience, in line with the government’s vision to transform India’s adaptability for digital through initiatives like Digital India. DD Sports’ reach in smaller cities and towns is unbeatable, making it the ideal platform to televise the India tour of West Indies, while we continue to build a superior digital experience for fans nationally.”

India’s sports media and sponsorship industry reached about ₹95 billion in FY20 but will be growing at a slower pace to reach ₹150 billion by 2024, a report said. According to the report by sports-related employment agency Sporjo and FICCI, the industry grew at a CAGR of 14% till 2020. Business Journl