MUMBAI: Production house Creative Eye Ltd has made a foray into sports marketing and celebrity management. The company has begun the innings by marketing the telecast rights of the on going EurAsia Cup Cricket Series. It is planning to include tennis also under the purview.

"Creative Eye's aim is to function as an event promoter and rights holder of sports properties. We will be negotiating with private broadcasters as well as Doordarshan. We have started with the EurAsia cricket series and propose to hold the series every year, thus establishing our mark in the field of sports. Another segment we are very serious about is tennis," states Creative Eye director Dheeraj Kumar.

In an official communiqué, Creative Eye said its foray into sports had opened new avenues for the company in terms of revenue generations and also added new horizons for the company's overall growth. "We are targeting revenue of $3 million out of the first EurAsia Cup series," says Kumar.

The first edition of the EurAsia Cup Cricket Series is currently underway in Abu Dhabi. As already reported, Sahara One Media & Entertainment Ltd. acquired the satellite rights of the series from Creative Eye. Now the production house has brought Prasar Bharati also on board to telecast the series from 29 April, when the second leg of the series begins. The matches will be aired live on DD Sports from 4 pm onwards, apart from the satellite telecast on Sahara One's Hindi movie channel Filmy.

Jawaharlal Nehru Sports Trust , in association with the Abu Dhabi Cricket Council has conceptualised the EurAsia Cup Cricket Series, which features India A, Pakistan A, Sri Lanka A, Holland, Ireland and the United Arab Emirates. Jawaharlal Nehru Sports Trust's sports wing V K Sports then signed Creative Eye to market the telecast rights of the event.

"Regarding EurAsia, our responsibility is to market the telecast rights and also ensure that the logistics are in place. This is a cash-less deal. Jawaharlal Nehru Sports Trust's interest in the initiative is to promote the young cricketing talents in this country," explains Kumar.

Creative Eye is planning to market two more sports events this year, including a tennis tournament. Celebrity management is another area the company is planning a foray into. "We have already initiated with prominent sportspersons of the country, including various new talents in cricket. We will be divulging the names as soon as the deals are through," says Kumar.