Indiatimes/YouTube Draws 62pc Increase in Online IPL Viewers

The online viewership for the first week of the Indian Premier League (IPL) Season 4 has registered a 62 per cent rise compared to last year due to the combined strength of Indiatimes and YouTube. 

In 2010, YouTube recorded over 5.5 million channel views in the first week of the league’s third edition. This year, the combined channel views of Indiatimes and YouTube for the same period have risen to 8.9 million. The highest figure for a day was recorded on April 12, when Rajasthan Royals played Delhi Daredevils and Royal Challengers Bangalore took on Mumbai Indians, attracting 1.7 million online viewers. 

Rishi Khiani, CEO of Times Internet, stated: “We’re excited about the response we’ve got so far and it will continue to build as we progress in the tournament. We foresee a bright future for online screening of IPL matches in coming years. 

“A common misconception is that people only watch online from the office. But our stats show that night games have almost as much consumption as day games. The experience allows you to do much more online, including watching highlights of previous matches, and viewers like that,” he added. 

YouTube is both a technology and distribution partner for Indiatimes in streaming IPL 4 online while the company has also partnered with Facebook to create live conversation around the games.