CHENNAI: Owing to the huge license fee to broadcast the ICCI Cricket World Cup matches, several restaurants are having second thoughts about screening this sporting spectacle. Pubs, coffee shops and hotels in the city claim that Novex Communication — the distributor for broadcasters like ESPN and Star Sports — is extorting money from them to telecast matches. The cost of the license imposed by Novex ranges from Rs 25, 000 — Rs 1.8 lakh, depending on the nature of the restaurant and the number of channels telecasting the match. But Novex Communication refuses this claim, stating that the fee amount collected from pubs, restaurants and hotels is maintained under the Copyright Act and is as per the norms. This issue is not prevalent only in the World Cup matches, but arises for the telecast of all the matches in a year. But a few hotels and malls in Chennai have been lucky enough to broadcast the World Cup without paying any fee. The Ampa Skywalk is one of them. This mall in Aminjikarai, is a hot spot for many, and telecasts the match live on a huge LED screen in its atrium. The mall has joined hands with Hyundai, which is the official car partner for the Cricket World Cup 2011, for screening the World Cup matches. It also takes the credit of being the ‘only mall’ in South India to screen the cricket match, thus facilitating customers to view the match while they shop.
According to Ampa Palaniappan of Ampa Housing Development, screening of the World Cup has attracted huge crowds in the last few days. “Being one of the newer malls in the city that houses a lot of good brands, Ampa Skywalk was chosen by Hyundai to broadcast the cricket match,” he says.
With the advantage of being the official car partner of ICCI, Hyundai has managed to acquire the license for the telecast of matches. The car brand is also exhibiting its cars and is organising games and setting up caricature artists at the mall.
While Ampa Skywalk was lucky to get the license through Hyundai, the other malls and restaurants in the city have paid a huge price for broadcasting the match. Rajesh from Fusion9 says that the restaurant had to pay an amount of ` 80, 000 to get the license from ESPN. Another restaurant owner in the city, (who does not wish to be named), telecasts only Indian matches in his restaurant. “We received a notice from ESPN, Star Sports and Star Cricket, asking us to pay a certain amount to telecast the cricket. But the matches that are screened at my restaurant are telecast in Doordarshan, which is absolutely free,” he says. Though most hoteliers refuse to pay the huge sum to get the license, there are many, who are going that extra mile for the public.
