Sports
Sport has led the way in making live experiences truly accessible: Siddharth Sharma at FICCI-EY report launch
JioStar’s Siddharth Sharma says access, not attendance, will define the next phase of growth
MUMBAI: The future of live entertainment will not be built in bigger venues but on bigger screens. Digital scale, not physical capacity, will power the next surge, Siddharth Sharma, head of content, sports, JioStar, said at the FICCI-EY M&E Industry Report launch 2026.
Speaking at a panel on the business of live entertainment, Sharma pointed to a decisive shift already underway. While concerts and cultural events are gathering pace, sport has long cracked the code on scale. Mega properties such as the TATA IPL now pull in tens of millions of concurrent viewers on digital platforms, numbers no stadium can contain.
“Sport has led the way in making live experiences truly accessible,” Sharma said, citing multi-language feeds, interactive features, multiple streams and population-scale concurrency as game changers now spilling into entertainment formats.
The playbook is expanding fast. From live streams of Mahashivratri and Ganesh Utsav to immersive storytelling around Ram Navami, platforms are pushing culturally rooted experiences into homes, tilting the model from attendance-led to access-led consumption.
Global concerts, including Coldplay, mark another pivot. Sharma called them inflection points for “made-for-broadcast” experiences, where interactivity, including on-demand camera angles and real-time engagement, extends the event far beyond those in the arena.
“The stadium of the future will not have a pin code. It will be defined by how much control the consumer has over the screen,” Sharma said.
That shift matters in India, where only a sliver of audiences can attend large events physically. Digital amplification stretches reach from thousands on-ground to millions at home, widening access while unlocking deeper engagement.
Personalisation is now the battleground. Platforms are moving away from a one-size-fits-all feed to tailored experiences, language, interface, interactivity and even commerce stitched into the stream. “We are moving from one experience for millions to millions of experiences for each user,” Sharma said, pointing to watch parties and real-time interactions turning viewers into participants.
The next leap, he argued, hinges on mindset. With storytelling, scale and technology converging, platforms and broadcasters can amplify cultural moments beyond physical limits.
Live is no longer a place. It is a screen: limitless, personalised and always on.
Sports
IPL 19 records 96.8 ad index as advertisers and categories decline: TAM Sports report
Fewer categories and advertisers as tech and FMCG brands reshape IPL ad mix
NEW DELHI: The on-field action remains strong, but advertising activity during the Indian Premier League has shown a slight shift this season. A report from TAM Sports, a division of TAM Media Research, indicates that the first 13 matches of IPL 19 have recorded a marginal decline in commercial volumes compared to the same phase last year.
Indexed ad volumes stood at 96.8, down from 100 in IPL 18. The number of advertising categories fell from over 50 to 40, while the advertiser base reduced from 65 to 45. At the same time, the number of channels broadcasting the tournament declined from 28 to 25.
Mouth Fresheners emerged as the leading category, contributing over 14 per cent of total ad volumes. Ecom-Other Services and Ecom-Wallets followed, maintaining a strong presence during the early part of the tournament.
The technology sector has gained prominence this season. Google ranked as the top advertiser, accounting for over 13 per cent of ad share. The company focused on promoting its Google Search Engine and Google Gemini AI platform. In contrast, categories such as Ecom-Gaming and Cellular Phones-Smart Phones did not feature among the leading segments this year.
TAM Sports analyst Arjun Sharma said the decline in volumes reflects a more focused approach by advertisers, with fewer but more prominent players dominating the space.
The report also identified new entrants, with ten additional categories including Chocolates, Laptops/Notebooks, and Hair Care products. Among companies, Vishnu Packaging and Reliance Consumer Products remained key advertisers, while Havells India and K P Pan Foods continued to feature prominently.
Among brands, Vimal Pan Masala and Kamla Pasand Silver Coated Elaichi recorded high visibility, while Cadburys Dairy Milk Chocolate was among the notable new entrants.
With the tournament still underway, advertising activity may increase in the coming weeks as more brands look to capitalise on IPL viewership.
