Channel 9 continues the tradition of absymal free to air rugby coverage...

[Elfster]

It'd be an unfair comparison because the NRL is shown live, where as the RWC has mostly been buried late at night with the only game being shown live being out of prime time.

There's some numbers here;
http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/socie.../the-ratings-race-week-37-20110905-1jsyb.html


The attendance to games is another interesting one 13,972 went to the Manly v Cowboys game on Saturday night ...
from:
http://www.theroar.com.au/2011/09/14/sydney-wheres-the-support-for-the-nrl/

At the pub where I watched the games, there was a healthy number of people watching all the RWC games. On the Saturday, there was only a few screens with the League and they were the most sparsely populated areas of the pub. Admittedly the pub was in a more traditional Rugby than League area, and it is rather stupid to make assertions from a sample of one, but in my experience, people tend to go to watch Rugby in communal groups and at pubs, so it could be argued (however badly) that the Rugby viewing numbers could be a little understated.

And about the League game, Manly vs the FNQ Cowboys, my local pub was giving away free tickets to it. And not that successfully either....

 

[Braveheart81]

That ABC article on the previous page alluded to the fact that if SBS had the coverage then we would be seeing a lot more or every game live on FTA. The problem with the IRB selling the rights is that their interest is only financial so they will sell it to the highest bidder. The ARU has little or no involvement so their power is limited to a little bit of lobbying to try and get the Australian games shown live (which seemingly on Saturday night isn't happening).

Channel 9s interest is purely to maximise their ratings. Clearly NRL is their flagship product and it rates well. If they show NRL on 9 and RWC on Gem then they would be assuming that they will just be cannabilising their own ratings. By showing one after the other there would be an assumption that they will have better ratings overall.

The difficult thing is how you remedy something like this? Currently, the anti-siphoning list looks like this in terms of rugby.

Rugby Union Football

6.1 Each international “test” match involving the senior Australian representative team selected by the Australian Rugby Union, played in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa or Europe.

6.2 Each match in the quarter-finals, semi-finals and the final of the Rugby World Cup tournament.

6.3 Each match of the Rugby World Cup tournament involving the senior Australian representative team selected by the Australian Rugby Union.

It would seem very unlikely that this would change in the future to ensure that all RWC games are shown live on FTA. I think the only possible avenue for the coverage to be improved on FTA would be for the ARU to arrange a deal with Channel 9 and SBS such that Channel 9 onsells the non-Wallabies pool games to SBS at a low value (which is clearly all that they are worth in the Aussie TV market) so they can be shown live on SBS or SBS2.

 

[Bowside]

They could also be sold-on to ONE HD, which is supposed to be a sports channel although they mostly show re-runs of cops now days. Which is a cracking show none the less.

 

[Slim 293]

ONE HD is struggling, and as a sports channel won't last.

However, in hindsight Channel 10/ONEHD would've been the best result for rugby in the country.

They've lost the rights to the AFL and I believe they've stopped broadcasting it on ONEHD, so they're without a major winter sport.

Also, Channel 10's offer for the Australian tests was apparently larger than 9's. If only they'd put in a better offer for the RWC.

 

[kronic]

1 week out & there has been no word from Wide World of Sports as to whether the Wallabies will be on LIVE nationally. Ask them: on.fb.me/KBvGDE

 

[p.Tah]

Excuse my ignorance kronic, but what is on.fb.me/KBvGDE ?

 

[kronic]

Excuse my ignorance kronic, but what is on.fb.me/KBvGDE ?

Sorry, link didn't automatically convert. It's the Facebook page for WWOS.

 

[p.Tah]

It's the Facebook page for WWOS.

Isn't it painful that everytime a Wallaby game is on we have to hassle Channel 9 to show it live

 

[kronic]

Isn't it painful that everytime a Wallaby game is on we have to hassle Channel 9 to show it live

Too right. Until they prove otherwise, we'll have to fight.

 

[Melbourne Terrace]

yeah look i would start spamming there page about it but they banned me ever since i listed AFL fanboy Len Downs, who is the channel 9 progamming manager in Melbourne, as the actual reason Rugby is never shown in Melbourne.

 

[kronic]

Nine HQ is right near Docklands... just saying

 

[liquor box]

Rugby Union Football

6.1 Each international “test” match involving the senior Australian representative team selected by the Australian Rugby Union, played in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa or Europe.

I have been waiting for 12 months for an answer from Stevphen Conroy about whether the list also now includes Argentina

 

[Karl]

I hate the way 9 bury the Rugby Union. You look at the crap they roll out on 99 and Gem and you think “Really?” And they do it on multiple levels – the Wallaby coverage in general, what they did to the RWC, the highlights for Super Rugby. The ARU need a kick in the pants. Properly promoted and with Free to Air coverage of key Super Rugby games, Rugby could be growing in a way that a few Foxtel dollars can’t hope to match.

I hope 10 get the NRL because then maybe 9 will have no choice but to push the Rugby harder.

 

[Da Munch]

From what has been said on offsiders, 9 will put a big bid in for the NRL broadcast rites because they are worried about 7 (who apparently have buckets of cash and 10 doesn't) pipping them.

And given the threshold for digital TV coverage/usage has been met (90% i think), they now don't need to apply for special clauses to play something on Gem, like they did for the RWC and then didn't show it anyway :X

It'll also be interesting to see if the NRL origin series gets split out as a separate contract which 7 could pick up and how the ratings are at the end of the year between NRL&AFL now that AFL is played live and with more games (especially in Sydney/Brisbane) - you can see this would make a good example&argument for all types of rugby union to be played on free to air and live.

Anyway my gut feeling is 9 will show these games live because none of them will conflict with NRL games but the Wales games will go up against the AFL.

p.s I hate 9 with a vengeance

 

[liquor box]

I would love to slap Andrew Slack, he is the director of sport at CH9 in Brisbane and we only see a story about the Reds if the Broncons, Titan and Cowboys all have a bye and it is coincidentally a week where the Reds can sell flowers for mothers day in the Queen street mall. Is he the definition of a sell out???

Even my wife comments every night that there was no Reds story on the news.

I dream of a day when the ARU is able to dictate terms of a contract that ensures at least one story on S15 during the season and Wallabies during test series on the news every night. A few less dollars for more promotion seems like a good deal to me. If the Reds were to have a positive story every night on the news they would get an extra 5000 people to every game. A simple highlights clip of Cooper and 2011 to highlight his return 2 weeks ago would have got a few extra through the gate.

 

[p.Tah]

Seriously?! Andrew Slack is the head of sport on Qld News and rugby doens't get on the highlight reel? what the...

 

[Slim 293]

I would love to slap Andrew Slack, he is the director of sport at CH9 in Brisbane and we only see a story about the Reds if the Broncons, Titan and Cowboys all have a bye and it is coincidentally a week where the Reds can sell flowers for mothers day in the Queen street mall. Is he the definition of a sell out???

Even my wife comments every night that there was no Reds story on the news.

I dream of a day when the ARU is able to dictate terms of a contract that ensures at least one story on S15 during the season and Wallabies during test series on the news every night. A few less dollars for more promotion seems like a good deal to me. If the Reds were to have a positive story every night on the news they would get an extra 5000 people to every game. A simple highlights clip of Cooper and 2011 to highlight his return 2 weeks ago would have got a few extra through the gate.

I'm sure ALL sporting organisations would like that... But it is never going to happen, nor should it...

You do know that sport production and news are separate departments?

 

[maxdacat]

I see there is a TBA on Go for 7.30 to 9.30 on June the 5th. Does this mean the Scotland match will be shown then?

If so, you do wonder about 9's don't tell anybody marketing strategy <scratches head>.

 

[armatt]

I see there is a TBA on Go for 7.30 to 9.30 on June the 5th. Does this mean the Scotland match will be shown then?

sounds promising - fingers are crossed.

 

[TOCC]

You do know that sport production and news are separate departments?

Which coincidentally impact on the ratings of one another..