Arab Digital Distribution (ADD), the largest pay TV platform management company in the Middle East and North Africa, will bring live and exclusive coverage of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 to the millions of cricket fans across the Middle East and North Africa. 

 

The leading DTH player in the MENA region, ADD had earlier won a 8-year exclusive television coverage rights deal for the Mena region, entitling the platform to telecast all the major ICC events.

 

The platform announced today that all the matches of the ICC CWC 2011 will be broadcast live on the television channel CricOne available only on its Pehla and FirstNet bouquets. The channel is available on the Pehla Silver & Gold, FirstNet Premium packages on the Pehla bouquet, E-Vision, Du packages in the UAE and Q-tel in Qatar.

 

Speaking on the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, Mr. Campbell Jamieson, GM Commercial, ICC, said, "The ICC Cricket World Cup is the flagship event for cricket and with the addition of the extended knock out stages to the 2011 edition, the event will deliver 49 competitive matches. We always endeavour to maximize the reach of our events and make them more accessible to fans on the ground and on TV. With Pehla being the most popular platform in the Middle East, our partnership with ADD via our global broadcast partner ESPN STAR Sports, gives us a chance to reach out to the maximum number of viewers in this part of the world."

 

Announcing the telecast of the latest edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup, Mr. Abdel Ghani Ali, CFO, Arab Media Corporation (AMC), the parent company of ADD, said, "ADD has always been at the forefront of getting the best of entertainment to its subscribers in the Mena region. The popular Pehla bouquet which has become synonymous with great cricketing action, yet again brings the most awaited event- the ICC CWC 2011 exclusively on the region's favorite cricket channel - CricOne.Cricket is one of the most popular games in the region and with this tie-up millions of our viewers will be able to enjoy the action live."

 

Starting on 19 February, the 10th edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup will be played in the Indian sub-continent with India, Srilanka and Bangladesh all set to host the biggest event of the cricketing world. The 49 matches of the mega-event will be played out at 13 venues across the three countries, with 29 matches being hosted in India including the final at the Wankhede stadium. 14 teams will battle it out for supremacy on the cricket field with the winners walking away with whopping US $3.25 million as prize money.

 

Pehla World Cup Special Subscription Bonanza

 

In order to reach out to the lovers of cricket across the region, Pehla announced its World Cup Special Subscription Bonanza, which entitles subscribers to upto four months of free viewing when subscribing for 12 months. The names of all active subscribers of CricOne will go in the raffle draw and multiple winners will get all expenses paid trips to watch the semi-finals in Colombo.

 

Commenting on the subscription drive, Mr. Ghani said, "A large number of people across the Mena region just love cricket. With the ICC Cricket World Cup just three weeks away, we thought of giving a lot of people out there an opportunity to enjoy the greatest cricketing event. Since ADD is known for bringing the best of sports coverage to this part of the world, a lot of people actually wait for our event driven offers that give them a greater value for money."

 

ADD to Fight Piracy as Content Infringement Set to Increase

 

ADD has stepped-up its efforts to combat piracy with the platform expecting an increase in the telecast content infringement during the cricketing mega event. The platform has shifted to a new encryption that is more secure. ADD is also providing all its subscribers with MPEG4 decoders completely free of cost.

 

Commenting on ADD's antipiracy campaign, Mr. Ghani said, "ADD has initiated a full fledged anti-piracy campaign wherein we are using a multi-pronged approach to address this illegal activity. These include raids on illegal dish antennas, co-operation with the local authorities and changing the encryption technology."