(9 February 2006 5:15 pm)

MUMBAI: In what finally came down to a race between two contestants, Nimbus Sport bested TWI to secure the BCCI contract for television productions of all the international and domestic cricket matches from March 2006 to March 2010.

A statement issued by the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) said, "Nimbus Sport quoted less than TWI in both the HDTV based package and the SDTV based package and being the lowest cost bidder, BCCI has awarded the production contract to Nimbus Sport."

The release further said, "Despite a considerably higher technical specifications issued by BCCI compared to previous series, such as increase in cameras from 21 to 25, inclusion of Hawkeye or equivalent, Zoomer, Ruler etc; BCCI has achieved an approx SDTV cost per day of coverage of international cricket of less than $ 96,000 compared to the recent India-Sri Lanka and India-South Africa ODI series where the BCCI had paid approx $ 125,000 per day. The reduction in cost is despite the fact that current contract with Nimbus Sport is for the next four years and costs will escalate every year but the BCCI has secured a fixed price for four years."

Even the HDTV quote ($ 102,000 per day) of Nimbus Sport works out to less on a per day basis than that paid out by BCCI on the above mentioned series for SDTV. The HDTV world feed will be produced from the second series in the four-year contract. This will be the first ever HDTV production of cricket in the world.

The deal will also involve up to 72 days of domestic cricket coverage as part of the package that will be produced by Nimbus Sport.

Lalit Modi, chairman of the BCCI marketing sub committee said, "BCCI in its quest for development of cricket in India wishes to provide the cricket fan the best viewing experience. With Nimbus Sport’s excellent track record and very competitive cost BCCI has secured for itself and its fans a fantastic level of television coverage never before seen in India cricket."

Commenting on the development Nimbus Sport chairman Harish Thawani said, "To say we are delighted to win the confidence of the BCCI is an understatement. ...we look forward to delivering to viewers across the world a never before seen standard of cricket coverage."

Nimbus Sport has previously produced for three years (2001-2003) Indian international cricket, has been the producer of the world feed of several other international cricket events, including the ICC Champions Trophy 2002 and the customized feeds of the ICC Cricket World Cups in 1999 and 2003.