The most anticipated Bangladesh-Pakistan three-match T20 series will begin on January 24 in Pakistan, if everything goes well. The Local TV channels of Bangladesh usually buy the visual copyrights from foreign channels to broadcast live matches here in Bangladesh, but it is not happening this time.
Still no announcement has come from the local TV channels of Bangladesh for the live broadcast of Bangladesh-Pakistan T-20 series. Apart from the announcement, some legal procedures also have to complete including the approval of Bangladesh Television (BTV) to broadcast live matches in local channels.
Our findings say, previously local TV channels of our country bought the live telecasting copyrights directly from some prominent international broadcaster like ‘Sony’ and ‘Star’ channel to broadcast live matches in the country.
But this time, no Bangladeshi TV channel could able to buy the copyrights from Sony Six which is the international broadcasting partner of the Bangladesh-Pakistan series.
Sunil Manocha, a former employee of the bankrupt event management firm called ‘Nimbas’, has bought the broadcasting copyright from Sony Six under the name ‘LSD Media’.
The affiliated television channel authority has told that sending money from Bangladesh to Sunil Manocha through illegal way would deprive the government from revenue earning. Bangladeshi Local TV channels always try to buy such copyrights through the appropriate banking channels. But Sunil Manocha did not agree with that.
That’s why, Bangladeshi television channels did not buy the broadcasting rights through illegal way, not even the day before of the series. As a result, no local television channel is broadcasting Bangladesh-Pakistan three-match T20 series this time.
Television channels claimed, “The government would be deprived from the revenue if the money was sent to Sunil Manocha via illegal channels.”
They also added, “We tried our best to buy broadcasting copyrights by sending money through legal way, but unfortunately Sunil Manocha had refused.”
A few years ago, a company named ‘Spots Solutions’ had seized huge amount of money by sending a fake bank draft to the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) in the name of selling the broadcasting copyrights for Bangladesh-Pakistan series. Sunil Manocha can do the same. No television channels wanted to go for the live telecast of Bangladesh-Pakistan series this time, because of that fear.
Among the Bangladeshi channels- GTV, Maasranga TV, Channel 9 and Bangladesh Television (BTV) do the live broadcast of such matches.
The Bangladesh-Pakistan match will begin on January 24 in Lahore at 2pm, which is an hour ahead of Bangladesh time. The second and the third match of the series will be held on January 25 and January 27 respectively.