The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has forced popular podcast The Grade Cricketer to delete all of its Indian Premier League (IPL) video content, after issuing a legal notice over alleged unauthorised use of tournament images.
According to the SMH, the show’s creators, Sam Perry and Ian Higgins, received a legal letter over the weekend from the BCCI and IPL authorities, demanding the removal of hundreds of videos across YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and X.
As per report, the complaint related to the use of still photographs from the tournament, which the BCCI claimed were used for “commercial” rather than strictly “editorial” purposes.
In response, Perry and Higgins chose to voluntarily remove every IPL-related video from their digital platforms, rather than risk suspension or a ban. As a result, their daily show, The Big IPL Breakfast, may have to be renamed, with all references to the IPL and official team names scrubbed from titles and graphics.
“You may have noticed that every single video from our coverage of this year’s cricket tournament has been removed,” Perry told listeners on Monday.
“This is something we’ve done ourselves… it’s very important to note we’re going to continue to post coverage of the tournament, at the same cadence that we do.”
Despite the setback, the duo still plans to travel to India later this week for a series of live shows coinciding with the IPL. They have assured fans that their content output will continue, albeit with a “deeper understanding” of what falls within BCCI’s strict content usage rules.
The Grade Cricketer, which boasts more than a million followers worldwide, has grown significantly among Indian audiences since a viral reaction video to Rishabh Pant’s heroics at the Gabba in 2021. The show’s producers have since invested heavily in building their Indian fanbase, conducting research trips and forging local partnerships.
The Grade Cricketer has become an Aussie icon, hosting interviews with stars such as Pat Cummins and Glenn Maxwell, and even featuring Prime Minister Anthony Albanese during the last federal election campaign.
The BCCI has not publicly commented on the matter.
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