ST JOHN'S, Antigua, (CMC) - The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) begin the project “Windies Cricket TV” this week with live coverage of the Red Stripe Bowl semifinals and final in Jamaica.

Television coverage is already confirmed for showing of the semifinals tomorrow and Friday and the final on Sunday from the Kaiser Sports Club, in 12 Caribbean countries in an arrangement between the WICB, CMC, and Britain-based Transworld International (TWI).

Television stations in Barbados, Guyana, St Vincent and the Grenadines, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, the Cayman Islands, St Maarten, Trinidad and Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Tortola, and hosts Jamaica are listed for the broadcast.

"This is part of our programme of trying to spread the game of West Indies cricket far and wide," Chris Dehring, head of WICB marketing, told CMC Radio yesterday.

The WICB, underwriting the cost for stations to receive the coverage, reports that the 2000 Red Stripe Bowl semifinals and final were watched, by an average, an audience of over one million people, and it anticipates growth in the concept.

“We are very pleased this year that we are actually stepping up the production quality of the broadcast of the Red Stripe Bowl semis and final," Dehring added.

Dehring is projecting more extensive coverage of the regional tournament if the WICB can establish a strong financial base for television coverage.

“Production costs and distribution costs for such a venture, just for three one-day matches, look in the order of US$300 000," he said.

"Clearly this is a very serious investment West Indies cricket is making at this time; what we are saying is that we are putting our money where our mouth is.

“We believe that we have to distribute cricket electronically so this is the start, and if we can expand the distribution into the international market where we can generate revenue, then we will hopefully be able to televise more and more matches, for instance in the preliminary round," said Dehring, who is heading the organising committee for the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies.

Gary Allen, CMC's chief operating officer, said he is happy his company's involvement in the project.

“CMC is always committed to sports coverage and our track record in cricket is clear. This Red Stripe Bowl also marks a newer phase of relations with the WICB which will benefit media coverage of regional cricket and we are happy to be involved in that,” Allen said.

Regional radio coverage of the Red Stripe `Final Four’ games, Jamaica against Guyana (tomorrow) and Trinidad and Tobago versus Barbados (Friday), and Sunday's final, will be distributed by CMC, with production by KLAS FM in Jamaica.

The radio commentary panel includes Michael Holding, Maurice Foster, Fazeer Mohammed, Sean Devers, and Mark Neita.