IPL advertising: E-commerce companies hog airtime

Rank 5 | Trent Boult (Delhi Capitals) | Wickets: 20 | Matches: 13 | Economy rate: 8.14 (Image: BCCI, iplt20.com)

The Indian Premier League (IPL) continues to entice brands across categories and it has been proven again this year with over 130 new brands coming on board as advertisers for this year's broadcast.

While many brick-and-mortar retailers are yet to shrug off the pangs of COVID-19, e-commerce companies have made a splash this year by spending big bucks on advertising during the live broadcast of the popular T20 cricket tournament.

In the first 16 matches, the e-commerce sector accounted for more than 30 percent of ad volumes, according to data compiled by TAM Sports. Among the new brands featuring in between overs, Vi Cellular Phone Service topped the list, followed by Oppo.

E-commerce gaming, which includes IPL title sponsor Dream11, was responsible for 10 percent of ad volumes, pipping the smartphones segment which accounted for 9 percent. E-commerce companies in the media, entertainment and social media space accounted for 8 percent of the ad volume followed by e-commerce education at 7 percent and e-commerce wallets at 6 percent.

"I think most advertisers who were to come onto the property are there - in broadcast or in digital. Fresh entrants now are unlikely. Current advertisers may increase volumes near the finals but new advertisers joining the fray is unlikely," Sandeep Goyal, chairman, Mogae Media, a Mumbai-based marketing and communication agency, told Moneycontrol.

Goyal added that since e-commerce brands across domains gained enormous traction during the lockdown, they are more buoyant and aggressive.

"Traditional brands as it is are hard hit by retail closures and fractured supply lines. So, their absence is not surprising," he said.

The number of advertisers and brands has also jumped by 11 percent and 13 percent respectively compared to the previous edition.

IPL 2020 is being telecast on 21 channels of the Star India network. In 2019, 24 channels were used to beam the matches.

Follow our live IPL 2020 coverage here.