Broadcast options for Australian Rugby

[RedsHappy]

Let me ask you this question.

If Wallaby matches are taken off FTA, and left exclusively on Pay TV, …

… What will happen to your "viewership numbers for this product"?

That's of course a totally different point to the one I made above.

Did I advocate ceasing FTA for Wallaby games?.........no. Of course there is a benefit to the code in that.

My point simply was: why should FTA - all stations now on far tighter financial constraints that even a few years ago - lift its commitment to showing more rugby in any form when objectively FTA sees today:

- Super Rugby product is generally poor and failing badly in crowd and Pay TV viewership terms

- no really well-constructed, well-run, reasonably 'tribal' domestic competition building reasonable crowds or general media buzz (the NRC is not this)

- little 'trickle down' interest from a (not) successful Wallaby brand, rather declines in FTA interest in Wallaby Tests vs historical FTA levels

- allegedly no serious ARU $s for active promotion for any of the above let alone new FTA initiatives

The whole 'FTA should be more interested in us today and would make a major difference to the code in Australia if they were' is, IMO, just an indulgent, non-objective pipe dream that also diverts from the far more primary and pressing issue that we have to seriously improve our product quality and types of product offering before we can expect 1% more FTA interest.

 

[Highlander35]

Yet another week with no Friday prime time.

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[Strewthcobber]

Apparently Ten/One arent paying anything for the Saturday night ALeague game.

Edit - misinterpreted some tweets, corrected below

 

[kiap]

That's of course a totally different point.

Sure. And you didn't answer it – in favour of continued lamentations about "the product".

Without free-to-air, the test viewer numbers will plummet.

Apparently Ten/One arent paying anything for the Saturday night ALeague game.

While $ is better than no dollars, FTA is still a vital part of sports coverage.

The Shute Shield is willing to pay for some of it, and they're right to do so.

 

[Strewthcobber]

Sure. And you didn't answer it.

Without free-to-air, the test viewer numbers would plummet.



While $ is better than no dollars, FTA is still a vital part of sports coverage.

The Shute Shield is willing to pay for some of it, and they're right to do so.

I need to correct myself.
$2m for ALeague and Socceroo friendlies.

One will simulcast whichever game Foxtel has on Sat night

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[kiap]

$2m for ALeague and Socceroo friendlies.

One will simulcast whichever game Foxtel has on Sat night

Well, that's not too bad.

 

[Strewthcobber]

Few more details - originally FFA were trying to sell the Saturday night game as a standalone game to commercial TV but were unable to do so.

The rights for the games passed back to Foxtel who did onsell it to One for the $2m a year - which is a fair bit less than what SBS were paying.

It's a bit unclear but it appears Ten will pay Fox that money, so essentially there is no additional revenue for the FFA under the deal

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[kiap]

Ten will pay Fox that money

Keep it in the family …

 

[half]

Few more details - originally FFA were trying to sell the Saturday night game as a standalone game to commercial TV but were unable to do so.

The rights for the games passed back to Foxtel who did onsell it to One for the $2m a year - which is a fair bit less than what SBS were paying.

It's a bit unclear but it appears Ten will pay Fox that money, so essentially there is no additional revenue for the FFA under the deal

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Stew

Its goes to FFA I think according to this.

The deal was only finalised in recent days after Football Federation Australia held a tender process with the FTA channels and ABC. Under its terms, Fox Sports will pay FFA $2m a year to assume the FTA rights for the next two seasons and onsell to Ten, who Anderson said would initially give its weekly game “consistent and stable scheduling” on its One sibling channel.

http://forum.insidesport.com.au/253...rk-signs-deal-to-show-primetime-g?PageIndex=1

 

[TOCC]

Think of it as owning the distribution rights, Foxtel paid for and own the distribution rights for FTA, Foxtel would have paid FFA for the exclusivity of the rights, then any onselling to FTA would be payable to Foxte.

Value to the A-League is much more then just the rights, the opportunity to open up to new markets and the improved coverage for commercial partners will be the direct benefit to A-League clubs.

 

[TOCC]

Best the ARU could muster was a replay game at 10am on a Sunday morning, does that even occur anymore?

What a sad state of affairs..

 

[kiap]

Foxtel would have paid FFA for the exclusivity of the rights, then any onselling to FTA would be payable to Foxtel.

I suspect that's it, but a separate deal to the main Foxtel arrangement.

If FFA had another party willing to pay for the FTA rights, they could have gone with that. Instead it fell back to Fox.

 

[half]

Think of it as owning the distribution rights, Foxtel paid for and own the distribution rights for FTA, Foxtel would have paid FFA for the exclusivity of the rights, then any onselling to FTA would be payable to Foxte.

Value to the A-League is much more then just the rights, the opportunity to open up to new markets and the improved coverage for commercial partners will be the direct benefit to A-League clubs.

Very very very true.... both opportunity costs and opportunity gains.

Its called opportunity cost for both 10 n FFA.

The opportunity cost for FFA is the extra they could have received by being on Fox only.

The opportunity cost for 10 is what profit they could make by showing reruns of Harry Potter.

But the opportunities it will create for FFA are immense.

The clever part by FFA was only signing for two years meaning it can be renegotiated in two years for a higher figure and they can add their expansion teams i.e their 6th game to 10's broadcast.

 

[p.Tah]

The 2 year signing with TEN has more to do with their financial instability and unwilliness to commit longer to a product that hasn't had great ratings over on SBS.
They just want more content and got it pretty cheaply. Not dissimilar to when 9 bought some RWC games off Foxtel. That one was a disaster because 9 chose RL games over RWC pool games when there was a clash. Fortunately for FFA TEN doesn't have a sporting clash in Winter, the BBL will be different in Summer.

I'm often wrong but seeing sports fans already had access to A-League games on FTA via SBS, are the ratings on TEN going to be that much greater?

 

[half]

I'm often wrong but seeing sports fans already had access to A-League games on FTA via SBS, are the ratings on TEN going to be that much greater?

Who knows, time will tell.

 

[RedsHappy]

Sure. And you didn't answer it – in favour of continued lamentations about "the product".

Without free-to-air, the test viewer numbers will plummet.

While $ is better than no dollars, FTA is still a vital part of sports coverage.

The Shute Shield is willing to pay for some of it, and they're right to do so.

Well, in fairness, IMO I did answer it by saying/agreeing 'there is clearly a benefit to the code in having FTA for Wallaby Tests'.

I'd love to see more FTA coverage of more rugby - who would not?

My point is solely that I see little point in wild speculations re getting more FTA for Australian rugby that I believe have a zero substantive basis as our rugby product quality and viewer and crowd support, and the trends relating thereto, are today.

 

[p.Tah]

Foxtel Now just launched in HD. Basic pack plus sport $39 per month.

Is that price different to Foxtel Play?

http://www.news.com.au/entertainmen...h/news-story/3c559a4baa56839466dfc12779285b82

 

[RedsHappy]

Foxtel Now just launched in HD. Basic pack plus sport $39 per month.

Is that price different to Foxtel Play?

http://www.news.com.au/entertainmen...h/news-story/3c559a4baa56839466dfc12779285b82

If confirmed, at these dramatically lowered price points for (it seems) Super and Test rugby via Foxtel via IPTV we may very soon get to test the 'price elasticity of demand' for pro rugby viewership in Australia.

 

[John S]

It will be interesting to see what happens after December:
http://www.smh.com.au/business/medi...board-mulls-debt-options-20170612-gwpubb.html

With one Super Rugby game a week plus Wallabies games on Ten, who will pick them up if Ten goes?

 

[RedsHappy]

It will be interesting to see what happens after December:
http://www.smh.com.au/business/medi...board-mulls-debt-options-20170612-gwpubb.html

With one Super Rugby game a week plus Wallabies games on Ten, who will pick them up if Ten goes?

Subject to 2017's final Test FTA viewership and crowd numbers once BC III is finished in October - and the early trend for both out of the Fiji match is very poor - I'd suggest the risk is that no other FTA station will be interested to replace TEN.