March 8, 2013: Good news for Sports Buffs! You have one more reason to be happy. ESPN STAR Sports is launching a new sports channel STAR Sports 2 from March 11. This move comes from Star Network to tap the growing audience for different types of sports in India. With the launch of Star Sports 2, Star Network would have six sports channels in its bouquet. On this new development, STAR India Chief Operating Officer Sanjay Gupta said, “It allows us to broadcast a wide array of sports content across channels, and cater to multiple live events simultaneously. Our vision is to expand the sports viewership in the country.”
STAR Sports 2 would be beaming live and non live events which will include events from different sporting categories like tennis, motor racing, cricket etc. Star Network has not yet come up with the pricing of the new sports channel but it would be in the Rs.30 range as Star Sports and ESPN are priced at Rs.29 a month and Star Cricket is priced at Rs.30. If sources are to be believed, the company is asking Rs.40-50 crore from DTH operators for a one year contract. The events that would be covered by STAR Sports 2 in its first month of launch are Barclays Premier League Action, Men’s ATP Tour among others.
