MUMBAI: Controversies, lawsuits! None of that has made an impact on the willingness of advertisers to cough out the big bucks for the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Sources say Multi Screen Media (MSM) is eyeing an ad revenue of Rs 9 billion, down from Rs 10 billion, as the extra teams will not be added in the fourth edition of the IPL. This will be 20 per cent up from the previous season of IPL.

Indiantelevision.com had earlier reported that MSM was looking at Rs 10 billion ad revenue from IPL 4, despite the ICC cricket World Cup preceding it.

Says Multi ScreenMedia (MSM) president network sales, licensing and telephony Rohit Gupta, “We are eyeing a 20 per cent revenue growth this year. Clients have shown firm belief in the value of this property. Many companies have returned. Vodafone and Videocon are back as co-presenting sponsors. The associate sponsors are Samsung Mobile, LG, Hyundai, Tata Photon, Pepsi. New sponsors joining us this year are Cadbury‘s and Havells. Earlier Havells used to take spots. To accomodate the new sponsors we have decided to include one more sponsor." 

Gupta, however, refused to spell out the exact revenue MSM was targeting.

MSM has roped in nine advertisers for the event and is looking at 11 sponsors in total, one more than last year.

MSM is also talking to companies including Godrej, HUL and Airtel to come on board as sponsors. The sponsor rate is Rs 500,000. The co-presenting sponsors will shell out Rs 550 million each while the rate for associate sponsors is around Rs 400 million.

Spot buys start at Rs 550,000. "When we close out 80 per cent of inventory, then we will start hiking the spot rates. Extraa Innings will have around six sponsors and will give us Rs 360 million. We sell at Rs. 100,000 per 10 seconds here. By January, we would have sold out everything," says Gupta.