Nimbus retain rights for cricket in India

The rights to India's home international games for four years from April 2010 have been provisionally awarded to Nimbus Communications for a projected valuation of Rs. 2000 crore (US$431 million). The deal is fixed at Rs 31.25 crore (approximately $6.6 million) per match, whether a Test, ODI or Twenty20, and is conditional on Nimbus furnishing a bank guarantee by January 15 of Rs 2000 crore.

That figure is based on the BCCI's current calculation of the number of games it might play between 2010-2014 but it is only a rough estimate given that the current Future Tours Programme ends in 2012 and the next one has not yet been made public.

The BCCI has not issued an official statement on the deal but Lalit Modi, the BCCI vice-president and a member of the Indian board's marketing committee that discussed it on Tuesday, confirmed the figures and said the package does not include internet or radio rights.

"It's the highest price ever that will be paid per match by a broadcaster to any national board," Modi told Cricinfo. "To put the figure in perspective, the IPL gets around Rs 7 crore per match and the Champions League Twenty20 around Rs 6 crore per match. Besides, there is also the possibility that the total amount may increase going forward if India plays more games like it would, for instance, once the uncertainty surrounding India-Pakistan matches is resolved."

Nimbus, one of India's leading television marketing companies, holds the rights at present, for which it paid $612 million - subsequently renegotiated to $549 million - in February 2006 for a deal that ends next March.