MUMBAI: Sports channel Star Sports, which is a part of Fox International Channels (Fic) Asia, has collaborated with global lubricants brand Shell Advance to develop an adventure travel series ?Freedom Riders Asia?, a turbo-injected programme that celebrates man and motorcycle on the move.

Hosted by biker Charley Boorman, ?Freedom Riders Asia? will see him pair up with local bikers from each country and embark on a journey to explore the colourful Asian cultures of India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand over six episodes starting from 15 May.

Over the course of each episode, he will engage with the local biking communities and experience the delights of the city and its people, as well as partake in unique activities that celebrate the distinctive motorcycle cultures of each country?..all on one tank of petrol.

Working closely with Shell, ?Freedom Riders Asia? was conceptualised and developed by the broadcaster with the programme concept of having one man on one bike with one tank of petrol embark on a road trip of a lifetime.

Fox One Stop Media senior VP Simeon Dawes said, ? ?Freedom Riders Asia? has been developed specifically for an Asian audience to meet the growing demographic of adventure and travel enthusiasts. We are confident that audiences in Asia and beyond will appreciate and enjoy the places and activities that Charley will visit and experience, especially due to the local colours and flavours showcased.?

?This collaboration is of particular significance as it marks the first time Star Sports has embarked on a project of such nature since becoming part of the FOX International Channels Asia network. We are delighted at being able to work closely with Shell Advance to produce this new programme format aimed at further engaging with our audiences on a deeper level.?

Shell Advance Global Brand Manager Kar Tai Koh said, ? ?Freedom Riders Asia? is all about celebrating and connecting bikers around Asia, while offering an entertaining travel and adventure experience to a wider audience. Importantly, through Charley, it is also a further expression of what Shell Advance stands for - enabling bikers to enjoy every ride and experience freedom through effortless mobility on the road.?

In addition to being broadcast and promoted on Star Sports, ?Freedom Riders Asia? will also aim to reach out to a significantly wider audience, through the promotion of the programme across Fic Asia?s family of channels such as Fox, National Geographic and FX, thus giving the programme a large promotional exposure.

MUMBAI: The live broadcast of the 2013 National Football League (NFL) Super Bowl XLVII featuring the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens will be broadcast on Star Sports and in high-definition on ESPN HD on 4 February at 5.00am (IST), .

The 2013 Super Bowl XLVII will be held in New Orleans and features the newly-crowned AFC Champions Baltimore Ravens, who survived a tough playoff season against formidable conference rivals, such as Peyton Manning?s tough Denver Broncos and ending Tom Brady?s quest for his fourth Super Bowl by beating the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game.

The NFC Champions San Francisco 49ers also had an inspiring run to this year?s Super Bowl by beating 2010 Champions Green Bay Packers in the Divisional Playoffs followed by the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Championship Game. History appears to be in their favour as the San Francisco 49ers are the only team never to have lost in the Super Bowl with a 5-0 winning record.

The 2013 Super Bowl also features several intriguing tales that go beyond the tape, such as two brothers who will coach opposing teams on America?s biggest sports stage in Jim and John Harbaugh. The Harbaugh brothers will become the first siblings in history to coach against each other at the Super Bowl when Jim?s San Francisco 49ers goes up against John?s Baltimore Ravens on Monday morning.

Another story-line includes the inspirational 37-year-old leader Ray Lewis, who recently announced that he will be playing his last game as a Baltimore Raven after the Super Bowl. Lewis is the last player remaining from the Ravens? inaugural season, earning himself 13 Pro Bowl appearances and the honour of being the first defensive linebacker to win the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player award, and will be looking to make his very last season count and finish his career on a high next Monday.

MUMBAI: After buying out Walt Disney?s stake in ESPN Star Sports (ESS), News Corp is restructuring its Asian sports broadcasting business. Star India will be in control of the sports business in India while it will be under Fox International Channels (FIC) in the rest of Asia.

The formal change in India will take place after News Corp?s acquisition gets the necessary regulatory approvals.

Though the Competition Commission of India (CCI) had in September cleared the deal, Star India chief operating officer Sanjay Gupta said some regulatory approvals were still to be obtained.

News Corp had taken full ownership of ESS by forking out $335 million for ESPN?s 50 per cent stake in the joint venture.

Gupta told Indiantelevision.com that the sports business will become part of Star India but would continue to function as a separate entity as it requires different set of expertise.

ESPN Software India Pvt Ltd (ESIPL), the India subsidiary of Asian sportscaster ESPN Star Sports (ESS), is headquartered in New Delhi and has a separate team that used to operate the joint venture company.

?The sports business requires a different mindset and a different set of expertise. Ad sales and distribution functions will, thus, continue to be managed by ESIPL, which will work closely with Star India,? Gupta explained.

It may be recalled that Star India, which holds the BCCI media rights till 2018, recently roped in ex-Hindustan Media Ventures Limited (HMVL) CEO Amit Chopra to steer its sports strategy in India. Star had acquired the BCCI media rights for Rs 38.51 billion.

In rest of Asia, Fox International Channels (FIC) Asia will manage all Fox Sports networks along with the current Star Sports, Fox Football Channel, Star Cricket and Star Cricket HD networks across various markets in the region with Peter Hutton at the helm.

"We are all part of the News Corp company. So we (FIC and Star India) will work together," a source familiar with the development said.

ESPN, which was today rebranded as Fox Sports in select markets in Asia, will continue to retain the brand name in India till the government clearance comes.

?We will continue with the ESPN brand name for some more time as the acquisition has not been completed in India. We are awaiting government clearance on transfer of assets,? Gupta said.

Star is yet to take a call whether to rebrand ESPN channel with the Star brand name, which is well-entrenched in India, or to adopt the Fox Sports name as is the case in rest of Asia.

?We are yet to take a call on what brand to replace the ESPN channel with in India. We are weighing two options. One is to have the Star name, which is a highly recognised brand in India, associated with it. The second option is to go with the Fox Sports brand which is News Corp?s well known sports brand in US,? Gupta averred.

Curtains on ESPN brand in Asia

FIC Asia today said beginning 28 January, the ESPN networks will be renamed as Fox Sports networks across various affiliate platforms in Asia.

The rebranding will first take effect in South East Asian countries. Among the countries that will first sport the new name include Brunei, Cambodia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

As part of the rebranding, ESPN will renamed as Fox Sports, the high-definition channel ESPN HD as Fox Sports Plus (HD), sports news channel ESPNews as Fox Sports News, the broadband network ESPN Player as Fox Sports Play and the mobile service mobileESPN as Fox Sports Mobile.

?Sports has always been a driver genre in the TV business and with the addition of Fox Sports to FIC Asia?s portfolio, we are well poised to further our position as Asia?s leading network. We are looking to launch even more premium sports content in the near future and are committed to making Fox Sports the premiere destination for passionate sports fans,? said FIC Sports SVP Peter Hutton.

Fox Sports will also launch the new sports news programme Fox Sports Central to replace the current programme Sports Center. Additionally, foxsportsasia.com will be the new online destination in place of espnstar.com for comprehensive, real time and authoritative content across an unrivalled breadth of sports news, editorial opinions, scores and more.