CHENNAI: SONY Pictures Networks, the Indian broadcaster for the upcoming World Cup in Russia, has set a target of 200mn unique viewers for the tournament. "It is an ambitious number but we feel we can achieve it," Prasana Krishnan, head of sports content at SPS India, said at a press conference on Friday. "We had noticed that there were a total of 350mn viewers (including La Liga and the Champions League) over the last 12 months. Even if we manage half of that over the next month, we will get near that figure."
To achieve that, SPN India will offer the marquee event in six languages, a first of its kind for the football World Cup in India. Apart from English, it will also be available in Hindi, Telugu, Bengali, Malayalam and Tamil. This service will be available for all 64 matches. Sony TEN 2 (and HD), Sony TEN 3 (and HD) and Sony ESPN (and HD) will broadcast the games.
They will also have a dedicated panel of experts analysing games from the studio in Mumbai. Indian captain Sunil Chhetri, seen in a similar role during the last World Cup, will be among them with the likes of Luis Garcia, who played for Spain at the 2006 World Cup in Germany. Former French international Louis Saha, former India captain Bhaichung Bhutia and former BFC manager Ashley Westwood are some of the other names who will dissect the matches.
Apart from this, SPN India, thanks to its association with ESPN, will also have a small ground presence in Russia where presenters will present lifestyle stories.