UFO Moviez, the world’s largest digital based platform will give a new dimension to the third edition of the IPL.

By Rajarshi Gupta

UFO will show all the matches from the T20 extravaganza on gigantic movie screens across India. As many as 550 screens across 350 cities in India and towns have been signed up to exhibit these matches and ensure that fans do not miss out on the frenzy at the ground.

“If fans cannot make it to the stadium, we will bring it to them,” promised Kapil Aggarwal, Joint Managing Director, UFO Moviez.

“We will make sure that people who come to watch these matches in theatres get a feel of what it is like to be in a stadium. There will be actors, team owners and players visiting the theatres.

There will be a Cinema Jockey, music and food stalls and lots of entertainment for the ‘spectators.’

In what is likely to be a revolution for cricket watchers across the country, they will be privy to 33 per cent more LIVE content than on TV.

“When you are watching a match on TV, you tend to miss out on a lot of action that happens in other parts of the ground. But the gigantic TV screens will allow viewers to see more and feel more.

To top it, there will be no advertisement breaks during the LIVE coverage.”

So what prompted UFO and Aggarwal to eat into movie times for theatres?

“The IPL is a very popular event. Soon there will be 10 teams instead of eight. That will mean more matches and more TRP’s. This means people want to see the IPL and better quality will add to the fun.

Nobody watches movies during the IPL and cinemas suffer a cut in their revenues. Our effort will enhance revenue opportunities for cineplexes,” Aggarwals summed it up.

The matches were all set to be screened last year but the project had to held back after the IPL bandwagon shifted to South Africa. The semi-finals and finals of the Airtel Champions League Twenty20 were shown in select theatres across the country and met with resounding success.

Though UFO officials were tight-lipped on the expected revenue for the first year, it is felt the coffers will depend on how the IPL itself shapes up in 2010.