Livestreaming cricket matches inside a shopping app, Daraz, is driving millions of users in Pakistan to try e-commerce for the first time. 

Cricket for commerce: Daraz is betting on sports to drive business in Pakistan Livestreaming cricket matches inside a shopping app, Daraz, is driving millions of users in Pakistan to try e-commerce for the first time. Sanjay Kanojia/AFP/Getty Images Alibaba's desire to dominate e-commerce in South Asia has pushed the firm to lean on one of the region's biggest obsessions: cricket. Last week, Daraz, the online shopping app owned by Alibaba, hosted an in-app livestream of the 2022 Asia Cup cricket match between India and Pakistan — one of the fiercest sports rivalries — that garnered nearly 21 million total views. "The match drew in 2.5 million simultaneous views to the Daraz app, something that we did not expect," Muhammad Ammar Hassan, chief marketing officer at Daraz Pakistan, told me. "Cricket surprises us every time." Unlike streaming platforms such as Disney+ Hotstar or Netflix, Daraz's aim with sports content isn't building a video subscription business. The stream remains free for users, and acts as a funnel for customer acquisition.  Since the start of the tournament on August 27, monthly active users on Daraz grew by 2 million, reaching a total of 12 million in Pakistan. But the ultimate success of the campaign will be determined by how many of these users Daraz is able to retain and monetize. Daraz's experiments with in-app livestreaming began with the ICC T20 World Cup in October 2021. The move was a roaring success: The app's monthly users in Pakistan, languishing at 6 million in October, soared to 15 million in November. Just as the company anticipated, this figure dropped to 11 million once the tournament ended in 2021. Yet, the jump from 6 to 11 million was significant. Most of the new users didn't start shopping immediately, said Hassan, but a big chunk eventually converted during the popular Singles' Day shopping event, Double 11. During the livestream, Daraz promotes shopping coupons and vouchers that nudge users to buy products. Hassan refused to share the exact user conversion rate, but said the hope is to convert at least 50% of users who tuned in for the matches, to shop on Daraz in the next year. Since then, Daraz has acquired exclusive rights to stream Pakistan Super League (PSL) on its app for two years. Daraz is now also the official sponsor of the Bangladesh cricket team. The company, in August, acquired rights for the digital streaming of the most-watched sporting event in the world, the English Premier League, in Pakistan. "So rather than just a 14-day or a 20-day event like cricket, it is a whole season of viewing that will make the audience stick to the app," Hassan said.  Daraz is currently monetizing the livestream by allowing brands to advertise during matches. Yet, profitability is elusive: "For the Asia Cup 2022, we broke even, but we are not profitable [yet]," Hassan said. – Nilesh Christopher Tweet Forward ▰ ▰ ▰ It's Our 2022 South Asia Newsletter Survey! It's free! It's private! It's a short survey to get a better sense of you — our subscribers — and how we can improve our work to serve you. TAKE SURVEY > ▰ ▰ ▰ Three things Bollywood wants a slice of tech action: Hindi film actor Ranveer Singh made his first startup investment in beauty and personal care brand Sugar Cosmetics. The company has not disclosed the amount Singh has invested. Deepika Padukone, Alia Bhatt, Hrithik Roshan, and many more, are active investors in Indian tech startups.  One kitchen, hundreds of restaurants: Cloud kitchens are commercial kitchens that operate solely for takeouts. But can one cloud kitchen operate over a hundred restaurant brands? That's the question Indian regulators are grappling with, after a Substack writer exposed that 189 restaurants were operating under a single food license. Amazon India's overhype: Research firm Bernstein believes that despite investing $6.5 billion in the past decade, Amazon's success in India is "decidedly mixed." The company has limited traction in tier 1/2 cities, and faces severe competition in newer categories, such as groceries, the research firm said, adding that profitability for Amazon.in remains elusive in an increasingly unfavorable regulatory environment. ▰ ▰ ▰ Samir Jana/Hindustan Times/Getty Images ICYMI Last week we published a piece on the rise of India's right-wing self-proclaimed open-source intelligence (OSINT) accounts. Rest of World investigated the output of @thehawkeyex and @OsintUpdates, two self-styled OSINT accounts that are being used to drive up engagement of half-truths, sometimes aiding the crackdown on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's critics. Globally, OSINT has become a powerful tool for journalists and researchers to hold power to account. In India, these accounts are using those same tools to delegitimize journalists and activists critical of the government. ▰ ▰ ▰ Before you go Higher than usual monsoon rains and melting glaciers have caused massive floods in Pakistan, affecting 33 million people and killing at least 1,290, including over 450 children. The worst flooding in Pakistan's history has washed away roads, homes, and crops, and one-third of the country is under water. Government officials say the cost of building back will run into billions. If you want to help out fellow South Asians, here's a list of international charities supporting flood victims in Pakistan: https://www.floods.pk. Thank you for reading. Please forward this to a friend and do reach out to us via southasia@restofworld.org. restofworld.org Past Issues • Unsubscribe   Follow us on Facebook • Twitter • LinkedIn