UCWeb, an Alibaba undertaking, has released data using their UC Browser on traffic trends during the ICC world Cup and the IPL 9. As per the data, ICC beats IPL.
The World Cup had over 7 million unique visitors following the game, tracking coverage and progress of the Indian team (on UC Browser, of course), as opposed to 4 million for IPL. The India vs. Pakistan being the most followed was looked for by over 10 million unique users on the browsers, as opposed to 8 million on Facebook.
The report also suggests that the Indian team remained a fan favorite during the World Cup, and batting sensation Virat Kohli was the people’s choice cricketer during both the tournament. The 27-year old smashed four centuries and spent over 1,000 minutes at the crease to deserve this accolade.
IPL 9, however, didn’t register the same enthusiasm among fans and had only 4 million unique visitors looking for information on the tournament. KKR and RCB remained favorites of this season while between the last two editions of IPL, season 9 saw over 25% increase in user traffic from last year.
Mr. Robert Blu, GM of UC Web India, said –
We know cricket in India is akin to a religion and the viewers are deeply passionate about the game… UC Browser with its mission to offer low-cost access is committed to bringing this beautiful game to more people through innovation and use of technology.
UC Browser is not the first one to try and exploit the content of this sport in India. Other browsers receive just as much traffic during the tournament. But some companies like Cricbuzz and ESPN Cricinfo have built their niche around it and are making the most out of it. It will be interesting to see where Alibaba goes with this initiative. Their vivid expansion plans have intrigued just about everyone.
