CPL secures landmark Facebook Live coverage and late rights deals

The Caribbean Premier League has secured a landmark deal for the 2016 edition of the Twenty20 cricket tournament to be streamed live via the Facebook social network.

All 34 matches will be available on the Facebook Live platform via the social network's live streaming partner, Grabyo.

The CPL has claimed it is the first sports league to supplement existing broadcast deals in this way. Coverage on Facebook will be available in 40 countries around the world, including Pakistan, South Africa and the Philippines.

The league also confirmed two late rights deals ahead of the start of the tournament today (Thursday), with Indian pay-television channel Sony Six and pay-television broadcaster OSN, which operates in the Middle East and North Africa.

It will be the third successive year that Sony Six has provided coverage of the event, with the broadcaster offering exclusive live coverage in Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka, as well as India. The deal includes digital rights, with the Sony Liv service set to stream live coverage of the competition.

OSN will provide coverage via the OSN Sports Cricket HD channel.