MUMBAI: Starsports.com’s video streaming of Pepsi IPL 2014 has broken many records, as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) took on Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) in the first qualifier match, while Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings played in the eliminator match. The platform witnessed the highest ever traffic for a sporting event outside the Super Bowl in the US.
The platform has hit a new high for a single day attracting 2.8 million consumers who followed the video service online.
Earlier this year, NBC Olympics had claimed the record for the most-watched authenticated stream for any internet event when it had generated more than 2.1 million unique video users on 21 February, the day of the men’s semifinals game between USA and Canada. Prior to this year’s tournament, the biggest day on IPL was in April 2013 when the mighty Chris Gayle scored 175 for Royal Challengers Bangalore, a match that attracted around 1.5 million sports fans. The biggest record for a single day worldwide is still believed to be the 2014 Super Bowl on a sister service, 21st Century Fox’s foxsports.com, which attracted 5.5 million unique visitors.
Starsports.com has now garnered unprecedented traction since the beginning of the tournament, attracting more than 55 million visits in the last six weeks. The press release adds that sports fans have watched 450 million minutes of video on the destination. Reflecting the underlying trend in video consumption in India, the destination crossed 1 million mobile video views in a single day for the first time.
Commenting on the achievement, New media Star India executive vice president and head Ajit Mohan said, “It was less than a year ago that we launched starsports.com. Our ambition was to redefine the sports experience for the Indian fan. For this service to take on and beat global records is no mean achievement. We have succeeded in creating a compelling new destination for sports, and that is a mobile screen.”
Star India COO Sanjay Gupta added, “The Indian consumer is ready for a big shift in video consumption. Starsports.com has shown the power of what can be done if we are thoughtful about creating a world class experience for the Indian consumer. Sports is just the beginning, expect more from us.”
