As IPL 2026 approaches, mobile platforms face a clear challenge: prove they can deliver predictable results and measurable business impact, not just reach numbers.
Why Standard Video Is No Longer Enough
Mobile advertising has moved beyond the question of relevance during IPL. Brands now want to know if mobile can match television’s reliability in driving real outcomes.
Nitin Sabharwal from indexical says advertisers no longer care about volume alone. They need predictable scale and evidence that mobile exposure during live matches creates tangible action.
Adding more pre-rolls or mid-rolls won’t unlock new revenue. Vishal Singh from Globale Media points out that this inventory already exists and prices are set. Simply talking about reach doesn’t convince brands to spend more.
On JioHotstar, mobile ad rates start at Rs 180-200 CPM for basic placements and go up to Rs 340 for premium matches. These rates stay well below television, but brands want more than just lower costs.
Singh sees the real opportunity in formats that let brands join live moments instead of interrupting them. Interactive layers, contextual placements triggered by match events, and app-native formats that allow instant user action are gaining attention.
Sabharwal agrees but warns that innovation alone doesn’t justify higher prices. These formats only work when they consistently reach tens of millions of quality users per match with strong data backing.
Innovation Tied To Real Mobile Behavior
Vijay Shenoy from LS Digital Group believes mobile growth depends on matching actual fan behavior. Fans don’t just watch matches on their phones. They switch between live streams, scorecards, fantasy interactions, messaging apps, and shopping platforms.
Shoppable ads, click-to-WhatsApp integrations, and moment-triggered units appearing after a wicket or six fit this behaviour better. Digital audiences already reached 650 million in IPL 2025. To charge premium rates, publishers need to deliver 70 to 100 million unique mobile viewers across a season.
Sabharwal notes that mobile serves as both the viewing screen and the action screen. When ads let users respond instantly, browse, buy, or sign up, mobile starts earning its place in serious IPL budgets.
Context And Environments Over Novelty
Bharat Subramanian from Big Trunk Communications says environments matter as much as innovation. High-attention placements within live scorecards, player statistics, prediction interfaces, and multi-angle feeds outperform standalone video because they appear during peak engagement.
Brands pay more when outcomes are reliable, not experimental. Fantasy gaming platforms used to dominate mobile IPL advertising with real-time formats. Their absence created a demand gap. Sabharwal sees this as both challenge and opportunity.
Many advertisers are shifting 40-50% of incremental IPL budgets to mobile programmatic and in-app environments, across categories such as quick commerce, FMCG, and e-commerce.
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