Live Current Media Inc(LCM), a Vancouver, Canada based company has bagged the portal rights of the Indian Premier League for 10 years for $50 million, we have confirmed from sources. LCM owns the domain Cricket.com, and intends to develop it as a portal around the IPL. An Indian company may also be involved with the portal. We believe that live streaming rights are not a part of the deal since those are being sold separately - Willow TV has got rights for streaming content in the Americas. $50 million for just the portal rights may seem high, but these are exclusive, and come at the cost of preventing other websites access to the IPL. As per reports, LCM had recently rejected a $6 million offer for the domain Cricket.com. LCM also bought a fantasy Cricket Facebook application for $25,000 (plus a bonus of $10,000 if targets are met), according to a filing with the SEC. At present, there are three fantasy cricket applications on Facebook. Here’s a deal straight out of Rupert Murdoch’s playbook circa 1994. Just like Murdoch established Fox back then by paying an exorbitant-seeming sum ($1.6 billion at the time) for the rights to broadcast the NFL, Live Current Media is paying $50 million over ten years for the exclusive online rights to official content from the Indian Premier League (a new cricket league in India with a shorter, more fan-friendly version of the game—first match is tomorrow). Cricket is huge in India and elsewhere. It is a sport perfect for online distribution, with fans spread all over the world. Globally there are about one billion fans, estimates Live Current Media. And the Indian Premier League has already on track to generate $2 billion overall this year.http://www.paidcontent.org/entry/419-canadian-firm-live-current-media-bags-indian-cricket-leagues-online-rig/
http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/04/17/live-current-media-signs-a-50-million-deal-for-exclusive-online-rights-to-indian-cricket/
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