Now, BCCI eyes money from SMS

Seeking to tap the potentially lucrative market of cricket updates, BCCI said it hoped to generate at least Rs 400 crore annually.

New Delhi, Mar 12 (PTI) Seeking to tap the potentially lucrative market of cricket updates, the Indian Cricket Board (BCCI) on Sunday said that it would ask all the telecom providers to enter into commercial agreements for providing scores through SMS, hoping this would generate at least Rs 400 crore annually for the sports body.

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"If telecom companies are offering SMS free, we have no issue. If they are charging for this, then the information is the property of the Board. We should get appropriate share of revenue from it," BCCI Vice President Lalit Modi told PTI.

Modi said that "on any playing day we estimate SMS business in India to generate Rs 20-22 crore and Board expects Rs 8-10 crore a day from it."

With an average 40-45 days of international cricket played in India every year, the Board could get at least over Rs 400 crore from this, Modi said.

Asked about the legal notices sent by the BCCI last week to all the telecom companies including Bharti Televentures, Reliance Infocomm and Idea, questioning their circulation of cricket scores without its approval, a BCCI Councel said that "we will be constrained to take appropriate legal action and take the matter to logical conclusion."