Buy early, pay less: IPL tries airline trick

You may get tickets cheaper if you book early, if a current plan gets off the ground — though it does not seem to have got the blessings of the IPL teams yet. Himani Chandna Gurtoo reports.

Planning to watch the clash between Mumbai Indians and Delhi Daredevils in the latest edition of the Indian Premier League?

You may get tickets cheaper if you book early, if a current plan gets off the ground — though it does not seem to have got the blessings of the teams yet.

The official ticketing partner for six teams, BookMyShow.com, wants to increase prices for probable high voltage matches, after consulting with teams. If this works out, early birds will get benefits—as in airlines.

BookMyShow.com sells tickets for Mumbai Indians, Delhi Daredevils, Pune Warrior, Kings XI Punjab, Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad.

“Early birds may benefit this season,” said Ashish Hemrajani, CEO, BookMyShow.com. “If a match has sold over 70% of tickets, prices for remaining tickets may go up by 15-25%.”

Ten days back, while opening the official ticket sales, franchises had pushed up basic ticket prices by 50%.

So, if last year you bought a ticket for Rs.500, you will pay at least Rs.750 for a similar ticket this year. And if the demand for the match zooms, you may end up spending almost Rs.1000.

“Ticket pricing is absolutely franchise's decision,” IPL CEO Sundar Raman said.