Broadcast options for Australian Rugby

[rugbyskier]

Seven will be broadcasting the Shute Shield (in Sydney) on 7Two......

7Mate will have AFL, VFL, SANFL, and WAFL in their respective states.

And I understand that Prime will also have the game on their 7Two channel in the Northern NSW and Southern NSW/ACT licence areas, which means that people on the Gold Coast will get the game on channel 62.

 

[Brumby Runner]

And I understand that Prime will also have the game on their 7Two channel in the Northern NSW and Southern NSW/ACT licence areas, which means that people on the Gold Coast will get the game on channel 62.

Bloody good news if true.

 

[liquor box]

http://www.cnet.com/news/nfl-plans-internet-only-national-broadcast-of-game/

The NFL is planning to give the ball to the Internet next season.
The National Football League intends to sell the national digital distribution rights of a regular season game this year to an Internet company, an NFL representative confirmed Monday. The move represents the first time that pro football fans will have to look somewhere other than TV to watch a game broadcast.
"This marks the first time the NFL will use a distributor other than a television network for a national game," said Brian McCarthy, vice president of communications for the NFL.
While the October 25 game between the between the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Buffalo Bills will still be broadcast on free over-the-air channels in the teams' home markets, fans in other markets will only be able to watch it on the Internet. The game will not be made available to subscribers of DirecTV's Sunday Ticket programming package, which broadcasts all out-of-market games nationally.
The digital rights for the game are being shopped around to major Internet companies, such as YouTube or Facebook, according to The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the move. No distributor has been chosen, McCarthy said, and it's not clear when the bids are due. Representatives for YouTube and Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The move may represent the beginning of a new distribution channel for the NFL, which has long relied on TV to reach fans and generate sizable revenue. The NFL inked new nine-year broadcast contract extensions with CBS, FOX and NBC that will reportedly earn the league an estimated $3 billion to $4 billion a year. (Disclosure: CBS is the parent company of CNET.)
The NFL has long sought to expand the reach of its games beyond traditional over-the-air broadcasts. In 2003, the NFL launched its NFL Channel, which three years later began broadcasting regular season games played on Thursdays, as well as draft coverage and documentaries.
The week seven game -- being played at London's Wembley Stadium -- is scheduled to start at 9:30 a.m. ET.

This is very interesting, if it works out well it may lead to Apple, Netflix, Amazon or other major players bidding for NFL coverage.

Not only will this increase the amount of income to the sport it could have an impact worldwide.

Imagine if Netflix or Stan got the rights to big Australian sport and allowed you to stream it for a few extra dollars a month, they would get a lot of subscriptions and potentially destroy foxtel.

With changes to internet broadcasting sport is now the main reason to keep foxtel, everything else is available for less money per month apart from sport.

I wonder if the ARU could provide footage to an internet provider and keep more money in their pocket?

 

[Omar Comin']

I think it'll happen, it's just a question of when. Streaming and on-demand TV is taking over.

I read an article on the SMH website yesterday where Simon Hackett - the founder of internode predicted commercial television as we know it has 5 years left.

Here it is: http://www.smh.com.au/business/medi...ads-are-the-future-of-tv-20150326-1m7eo1.html

 

[Joeleee]

http://www.cnet.com/news/nfl-plans-internet-only-national-broadcast-of-game/



This is very interesting, if it works out well it may lead to Apple, Netflix, Amazon or other major players bidding for NFL coverage.

Not only will this increase the amount of income to the sport it could have an impact worldwide.

Imagine if Netflix or Stan got the rights to big Australian sport and allowed you to stream it for a few extra dollars a month, they would get a lot of subscriptions and potentially destroy foxtel.

With changes to internet broadcasting sport is now the main reason to keep foxtel, everything else is available for less money per month apart from sport.

I wonder if the ARU could provide footage to an internet provider and keep more money in their pocket?

I think it's definitely the way things are moving. Even in the US, the only thing really keeping pay TV afloat is sport, because it's the only thing people care about watching live. There would be some concerns in Australia over the terrible state of the internet infrastructure,especially for people in rural areas, but I already watch the games streamed on Foxtel Go, and I definitely think it's the way of the future.

 

[Slim 293]

The V8s have been producing their own content for a while now, and this year Tennis Australia started doing the same.........

AFL will follow suit soon as they're building their own media infrastructure...........

The current laws mean they still rely on deals with the FTA networks to air their content, but certainly they're not far off the capability to stream their own product independently from Fox.

 

[TOCC]

I think online content will play a much bigger role at the next contract negotiations rather then this one.. It's definitely increasing as a viable alternative and I use it quite a bit through Presto and FoxtelGo currently, but it will be many years before the quality catches up to the HD quality available on FTA and Fox.


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[liquor box]

I think online content will play a much bigger role at the next contract negotiations rather then this one.. It's definitely increasing as a viable alternative and I use it quite a bit through Presto and FoxtelGo currently, but it will be many years before the quality catches up to the HD quality available on FTA and Fox.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Surely if you download HD it is the same as Foxtel's HD?

 

[Slim 293]

Having just acquired Netflix in all its HD glory, the others have some catching up to do.........

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

I think it'll happen, it's just a question of when. Streaming and on-demand TV is taking over.

I read an article on the SMH website yesterday where Simon Hackett - the founder of internode predicted commercial television as we know it has 5 years left.

Here it is: http://www.smh.com.au/business/medi...ads-are-the-future-of-tv-20150326-1m7eo1.html

Five years tops. Outside of the Rugby and Cricket we stream everything at my place now. We have Presto, Stan and now Netflix. Next week we'll be using a VPN to sign up to both HBO GO and Showtime.

 

[BDA]

I think cable TV mediums like Foxtel will eventually move more towards being niche "live broadcast" mediums over time. They'll be more and more about providing live high definition sports and other live events and will invest much less money on TV series, movies and the like. But I think it'll be a very slow burn. The large majority of baby boomers aren't going to adopt a net-flicks type product. They'll stick with cable. So I'd guess Foxtel has a good 10 years before it has to start making any major changes to its business model.

 

[TOCC]

Surely if you download HD it is the same as Foxtel's HD?

Well yes thats fine if you want to watch the game on delay, however in terms of live broadcast there aren't too many providers or areas in Australia which have the necessary bandwidth to stream at HD or even SD quality.

 

[Omar Comin']

The large majority of baby boomers aren't going to adopt a net-flicks type product. They'll stick with cable. So I'd guess Foxtel has a good 10 years before it has to start making any major changes to its business model.

People have thought the same about lots of superseded technology.

The alternative is buying a $40 Chromecast, getting NetFlix and suddenly your monthly entertainment bill is 10-20% that of Foxtel. And it's not difficult to set up.

All Foxtel really has now is Live Sport. There is nothing else to drive subscriptions. When the NBN is finished it'll be possible to stream live sport in HD to most of the population and that's when streaming services will surely start competing for sports rights.

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

People have thought the same about lots of superseded technology.

The alternative is buying a $40 Chromecast, getting NetFlix and suddenly your monthly entertainment bill is 10-20% that of Foxtel. And it's not difficult to set up.

All Foxtel really has now is Live Sport. There is nothing else to drive subscriptions. When the NBN is finished it'll be possible to stream live sport in HD to most of the population and that's when streaming services will surely start competing for sports rights.

If you have an XBOX you don't even need the Chromecast as it supports a number of streaming services including Netflix.

As for the live sport argument. I used to watch the ITM Cup through Foxtels XBOX service live. It can be done even with our limited bandwidth. Smart organisations are setting these services up looking to really cash in.

 

[Omar Comin']

If you have an XBOX you don't even need the Chromecast as it supports a number of streaming services including Netflix.

It also works directly on new smart TV's. But for say a baby boomer with a TV that's 5 years old and no gaming console they can get a chromecast.

I think after the next broadcast deal - so from 2022, SANZAR should be looking to partner with one of these providers to create a rugby streaming product. Rugby Championship, Super Rugby, ITM Cup, Currie Cup, NRC, Sevens World Series etc could all be on one platform. Watch games live, or on delay, or as extended highlights. And there could be so much additional content in and around it.

 

[TOCC]

It also works directly on new smart TV's. But for say a baby boomer with a TV that's 5 years old and no gaming console they can get a chromecast.

they could get a chromecast but most won't, it's unfamiliar and it's not nearly as user friendly as foxtel...

Aside from bandwidth, the biggest hindrance to online streaming is accessibility and a means to steam it easily onto your home tv.. SmartTV's are still some way from been the all in one solution to home entertainment. They either have clunky interfaces or lack the license rights to host that provider.


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[Marcelo]

I think after the next broadcast deal - so from 2022, SANZAR should be looking to partner with one of these providers to create a rugby streaming product. Rugby Championship, Super Rugby, ITM Cup, Currie Cup, NRC, Sevens World Series etc could all be on one platform. Watch games live, or on delay, or as extended highlights. And there could be so much additional content in and around it.

That would be fantastic!

 

[p.Tah]

Will people in Australia apart from rugby fans subscribe to a streamed rugby channel? Unlikely.
The beauty of Free to air TV is that non-rugby folk who love sport may switch channels and be exposed to the game or they may tune in for an event such as the Bledisloe.
A person who subscribes to Foxtel to watch the NRL or the AFL may also switch over to watch the rugby or an event like the Super Rugby Grand Final.

It's these people who are the ones that allow the game to grow outside its traditional nurseries.

If we have a stand alone rugby channel' that you subscribe to no one but rugby people will pay for it.

In my opinion rugby needs to be part of a multi sport package of channels (which can be streamed) otherwise it will become even more niche.

 

[Omar Comin']

Will people in Australia apart from rugby fans subscribe to a streamed rugby channel? Unlikely

No, and you wouldn't only broadcast it on this service. You'd ideally have some games on more mass market channels or services for sure.

But if you could get a high % of rugby fans subscribing to a service like this then it would be a very significant revenue stream. Maybe you could even offer the first 20 minutes or even first half of certain games for free...and allow only paid subscribers to see the rest.

Scheduled FTA and Cable TV as we know it might barely exist in 5-10 years so there may not be a whole lot of people switching channels anyway. Social media will become more and more important for making people aware of stuff they don't actively follow.

 

[wamberal]

I reckon quite a number of hard-core rugby tragics would subscribe to a world rugby channel, if we were able to watch any game we wanted to, on demand.