ATN ACQUIRES LONG TERM CANADIAN RIGHTS FOR CHAMPIONS TWENTY 20 CRICKET TOURNAMENT
November 26, 2008
TORONTO, CANADA November 26th 2008 -- Asian Television Network International Limited (ATN) (TSX-SAT), Canada’s pioneer South Asian Broadcaster and Canada’s largest Distributor of World Class Cricket, announced today that it has secured the exclusive Canadian broadcast rights for the Champions League Twenty20 Tournaments cricket series for the next three years. The 2008 series will be shown live and rebroadcast on ATN’s CBN and ATN- Cricket Plus in Canada.
The Champions T20 League competitions are between the winners and runners-up of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the Cricket Australia and Cricket South Africa domestic Twenty20 competitions. The best domestic T20 teams from India, Australia, South Africa, England and Pakistan will fight it out in a fifteen game tournament in India beginning December 3, 2008.
The Champions T20 plan will see the eight sides divided into two divisions and feature 15 group games including semi-finals and a final. ESPN Star Sports (ESS) won the exclusive global commercial rights for the Champions League T20 for $975 million (US).
We are thrilled with our sub licensing agreement with Willow TV (Reliance) and through that our programming alliance with the world renowned ESPN Star Sports, and with the exciting advances in broadcasting technology they bring to this series,” said Mr. Shan Chandrasekar, President & CEO of ATN.
“Our fans will enjoy the immediate benefits of the most advanced camerawork in the world,” he said. “And starting next year, ATN plans to telecast the tournament in HD format across Canada based on ESS making it the first HD telecast for any sporting event on the Indian subcontinent.”
ESS will use 34 cameras at each match, deploying the highest number of cameras used in any multi-venue cricket tournament to date. These include aerial views with Fly cameras, a boundary side field camera to showcase fielding and a new mid-wicket camera position to highlight running between the wickets that will deliver another new viewing dimension to the audience.
To capture the fast paced action, ESS will use Super Slow Motion cameras, player and umpire microphones as well as new dugout and crowd cameras to capture the reactions and emotions off the field, bringing fans closer to the action like never before. the field, bringing fans closer to the action like never before.
Mr. Chandrasekar noted that music composed by AR Rahman will be featured in many on-air elements of the T20 Champions League coverage. “ATN was the proud presenter of the first ever live event featuring Oscar-nominated music composer and director AR Rahman at the Toronto Sky Dome back in September 2000,” he added. “Today we are delighted to see his music incorporated in these live global broadcasts.”
Twenty20 or T20 cricket is a fast-paced cricket format designed to appeal to television audiences as well as fans in attendance. Each game lasts less than four hours and involves two teams with a single inning each, batting for a maximum of 20 overs.
CBN (the Commonwealth Broadcasting Network) and ATN-Cricket Plus are ATN’s two sports oriented channels. ATN operates 14 channels and has programming alliances with leading International Broadcasters. ATN is also the official Broadcast Media Sponsor of the Canadian National Cricket Team. To subscribe to CBN or ATN-Cricket Plus and for more details about the cricket schedules and times of live broadcast please visit www.asiantelevision.com or contact your local service provider.
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FOR MORE INFORMATION:
B. Fulton CFO
Asian Television Network International Limited
Newmarket, Ontario
905-836-6460
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