Any loss arising from the recent direction will depend on which events the Government decides come under its ruling.
R.C. Venkateish, managing director, ESPN Software India, told The Hindu Business Line: "We are concerned about the new law being applied on events for which the bids have already been finalised and contracts have been signed. We feel that the norms must be applied on a prospective basis and not on a retrospective basis."
The international cricket boards as well as broadcasters have expressed concern regarding possible violation of intellectual property rights, as the requirement to share rights with the national broadcaster is not built into existing contracts.
Broadcasters are keen for the Government to give them a reasonable opportunity for exclusivity.
"Earlier Prasar Bharati had agreed to airing only the One Day International (ODI) matches live and not the test matches. We hope the Government continues with that policy," said Venkateish.
Broadcasters such as Sony and ESPN have been sharing content with state-run Doordarshan for various cricket series.
"I have always maintained that revenues of private channels would not be impacted by the mandatory sharing of rights policy.
"Last year, ESPN had entered into a pre-bid agreement with us before pitching for the four-year BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) rights. But that did not stop them from bidding high.
"Similarly, this year too, despite entering into sharing agreements, both Zee Telefilms and ESPN have bid competitively," said K.S. Sarma, CEO, Prasar Bharati.
