Star Sports, Tata Play partner to offer targeted advertising starting with IPL

Tata Play and Star Sports, the official broadcaster of Indian Premier League (IPL), in an industry-first move announced a partnership to launch targeted advertising on linear TV, specifically during live sports broadcasts, starting from this IPL season.

The partnership aims to provide advertisers access to premium audiences in the top eight metro cities of India. The advertisers can specifically target their ads during live IPL matches on Star Sports channels, the companies said in a release.

“Addressable Ads capability for unconnected boxes is a groundbreaking global first in Pay TV that will be introduced for the first time on live sports during Tata IPL,” said Harit Nagpal, Managing Director & CEO, Tata Play.

Tata Play in December 2023 had rolled out addressable ads for linear television, a ‘breakthrough’ in the Indian industry for unconnected boxes and a move that should propel revenues of the dish tv provider who never had access to advertising revenue.

Addressable ads allow brands to target segmented audiences with same TV ad spots. In simple terms, broadcasters can choose which ads to play for which audience of varied regions and income groups.

The addressable ads allow advertisers to better target city markets to make their brands more visible. Also, for advertisers aiming at customers across India, this service improves their existing plans by helping them target specific areas in big cities better.

“The convergence of the largest DTH provider and the biggest TV network presents a significant advantage for advertisers,” said Ajit Varghese, Head – Network Advertising Sales at Disney Star.

This new service is for all kinds of advertisers, including big brands in areas like fast food, online services, travel, consumer products and others.