The media rights for the Board of Control for Cricket in India-promoted Indian Premier League (IPL) were bagged by the consortium of Sony Television and World Sports Group for USD 1.026 billion (Rs 4030 crore approx) which included USD 108 million (Rs 424 crore) for compulsory promotions.

“There were two bidders in the final phase - ESPN Star Sports and the Sony-WSG combine. Sony-WSG bagged the media rights for 1.026 billion US dollars comprising 918 million USD plus 108 million USD for compulsory promotional activities. The bid was for ten years,” IPL chairman-cum-commissioner Lalit Modi said.

The tournament, involving eight franchise teams, will be held in a dozen cities under floodlights for 44 days beginning April 18, Modi said. The cities for hosting matches are: Mumbai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Cuttack, Kanpur, Gwalior, Mohali, Jaipur, Delhi and Hyderabad.