Virtual Venue

Rs 12,000 to Rs 11,000 over the past three games,” says Rao,26,who quietly bids for players in between office hours.

Each player is given a virtual sum of Rs 10 lakh to invest in bidding. Depending on the performance,the base price of a player can fall or rise. So if a batsman scores six,his price rises while the bowler’s falls. Similarly,other factors like wickets,catches,stumpings,half-centuries and centuries determine a player’s price. “Unlike other gaming applications which divide players into teams which then challenge each other,this is live action with the price of the players changing with every match,” says Rahul Razdan,head of gaming and communications,ibibo.com,which features the game. Last year,they ran a similar application called Ifantasy Cricket in which points were scored on the basis of a player’s performance in the league. But with the IPL bringing in auction to the table,how could the Internet stay away?

The cyber space is fast becoming a new avenue to exploit the nation’s craze for cricket,with people in the 15-30 age bracket feeding it. While only a few companies were active for the first season of IPL,this time many have come forward with online gaming applications for hardcore gamers. The online game Indian Hatke League (IHL) offered by Virgin Mobile is a witty take on the IPL. Teams like Delhi Dhinchaks and Rajasthan Muchads face off,with funny caricatures as their teams’ logo. Gamers can choose a team and play as many times as they like. They submit their individual score after the stipulated time for the match and gain points accordingly. A running commentary is provided by “Ziddu” and “Inzoo”. “We wanted to have a fun and interactive take on cricket. This platform has everything that represents the youth — it is witty,cheeky,adventurous and has a hint of chutzpah,” says Prasad Narasimhan,chief marketing officer,Virgin Mobile. Within 15 days of its launch,the game had over 20,000 registered users. Most companies attempt to keep the games as engaging as possible to register maximum participation from gamers. So the IHL offers prizes worth Rs 10 lakh under different categories. “Providing incentives for gamers is vital as they would not otherwise invest their time and effort,” says Narasimhan.

The online gaming company,Games2win.com,which launched the Internet Cricket League last year,has started a game called Super Sixes for Orkut users,where a gamer gets 12 chances to score sixers. “People are not too keen on the longer format of the game. Ever since the IPL began,we have registered 10,000 games daily,” says Dinesh Gopalakrishnan,publishing head of the company.

Kolkata Knight Riders’ official team sponsor,Nokia,also has various initiatives for fans. One of them is the Nokia KKR T20,a mobile game in which you can be in the Kolkata Knight Riders’ team and bat for it,apart from tracking the team’s performance,zooming in on match locations and getting information on the match schedule. But with the Kolkata Knight Riders turning into Kolkata Nightmares,not many would want to be in their XI,with John Buchanan for company.

At least P. Chidambaram can take heart,these new virtual venues would not create security issues for the government,even in the midst of elections 2009.