The Business of Sports

The Business of Sports
Sports: The Next Big Thing (BT cover, April 18) raises prospects of big investment in sports and creation of sports infrastructure in the country. And with businesses, media agencies and sports-management firms adopting a more strategic approach on marketing and developing sports in India, sports marketing looks set to grow.

— Shashi Shekhar, Bangalore

Not By Cricket Alone
Despite being a nation of a billion-plus people, our accomplishments in sports are nothing to speak of. The fact that we have won just 20 Olympic medals in the last 100 years while our next-door neighbour China has won 100 in one year alone reflects poorly on our sporting prowess. Perhaps, as your cover story seeks to portray, with interest in sports other than cricket gradually spreading and gaining ground, we may see the dawn of a new era as Indians engage more actively in the participation and consumption of sports like hockey, tennis, soccer, golf and others.

—Vineet Achyut, Delhi

Sports-led Marketing
More and more businesses are now looking to leverage sports as a medium both for enhancing brand equity as well as generating business results. The overwhelming success of the IPL shows how sports-led marketing, by aligning business needs with the emotional needs of the sports consumer, can help to create not only a globally successful sports brand but also build a competitive framework for sportspersons to participate in.

— Alok Rai, Chennai

A Reformist Budget
By accepting the recommendations of the 13th Finance Commission, Budget 2010 (Welcome to UPA's New Economic Order, BT cover, March 21) aims to usher the country into a brave new world of tax reforms, double-digit growth and fiscal federalism. By bringing in a slew of direct tax changes, the Budget has paved the ground for the implementation of the Direct Tax Code next year and Goods and Services Tax in 2014.

— Ashok Jayaram, Bangalore

Safeguarding Investors
Out of the Ordinary IPOs (BT, April 18) is right in advising caution to potential investors of IPOs. In recent months, there have been several instances where the market value of an IPO has gone down below its issue price. This has caused widespread losses to primary market investors, many of whom are fixedincome earners and retail investors. In this regard, I feel the Securities & Exchange Board of India should take suo moto action by devising appropriate safeguards to protect investors' interests. Can't a rule be made so that new companies less than 10 years old cannot issue shares in the market through IPOs for more than their face value? Alternatively, SEBI can allow insurance companies to come forward to guarantee the market price of IPOs for a fixed term.

— Mahesh Kumar, Delhi