Broadcasting rights go out to tender

[Man of Kent]

If we're in fantasy mode then I suggest the BBC stops paying £70m a year for Premier League highlights and buys the Super League rights instead for roughly half that cost. Then I wake up.

[Rupert Prince]

13 minutes ago, Eddie said:

Why wouldn’t the BBC want to screen a second tier game in a minority sport played almost exclusively in a small area of the country to the whole country? Let me think  

The BBC fall over themselves to show a whole host of programmes that no one wants to watch.  Its all down to its prejudices.  And once it's picked up on such an event it then bigs it up.  

[Eddie]

1 minute ago, Rupert Prince said:

The BBC fall over themselves to show a whole host of programmes that no one wants to watch.  Its all down to its prejudices.  And once it's picked up on such an event it then bigs it up.  

Indeed, but championship rugby league is most certainly not something they’re going to choose to show and big up, however few people would want to watch it. 

[Eddie]

12 minutes ago, SL17 said:

What BBC channel is your experience telling you?

? 

[Tommygilf]

1 hour ago, Eddie said:

England games should be on the BBC imho, as they’re the ones that the whole of the country are most likely to watch. I’d have that as a separate entity, though would be good to keep the CC on the BBC also.
I can’t imagine any national broadcaster would want to show a championship game, certainly not the BBC. 

Thats kind of my point.

The Championship's value isn't large right now, but it has some stuff to build on. London, Leigh, Halifax, Bradford, Widnes are all former Super League clubs, teams like Toulouse and York are in fantastic facilities with clear Super League aspirations and within the next broadcast cycle we're almost certain to see an ambitious Ottawa and Newcastle in there too. That's not inherently unattractive, but could require either Super League or another attractive package such as the Challenge cup and/or internationals as the primary way to get the Championship some much needed exposure.

I agree internationals should be separate and above the club game, but their infrequency and the fact that the BBC are realistically the only people we'll consider for this are clearly limiting factors.

The cup is really the main thing in the "package B". Its regular and has essentially guaranteed Super League clashes. Positioning the Championship as a regular show to compliment the cup could be attractive.

[Eddie]

16 minutes ago, SL17 said:

Let me try again. You base your opinion on using your experience of seeing RL on BBC.

My question? Is what channel could be used to show a championship game. Forgive my ignorance but we now have more than two.

Well none, nobody would want to show it. As I said it’s a minority sport played in a small area of the country.

BBC - no, as above. ITV/C4/C5 - no because they depend on viewers for advertising revenue. Sky - definitely not as they already have the rights and don’t show it. So who else is there, not Amazon! 

[Toby Chopra]

3 hours ago, Dave T said:

Because Championship Rugby League is nothing like International RL, and they won't be sold as a bundle. There is not an ounce of logic for those being bundled together beyond they are the same sport.

Similarly, Amazon may want to become the home of International Rugby (both codes) and want the England internationals, but not be interested in the Cup or Championships.

The packages will be flexible and varied.

You might be right Dave, time will tell. But Sky's England union contract is exactly that: the England internationals that the RFU hold rights for (autumn, women's, baabaas etc) + some second tier games. I think it also used to include the English cup when the RFU controlled the rights. 

The only reason soccer is carved up is a/ sheer volume of content b/ more different rights holders, and c/ it's the only sport subject to an anti monopoly ruling. 

Beyond the highest profile sports and events, broadcasters want volume of inventory; and they use different bits of inventory for different purposes, expending different amounts of resources promoting each bit.

IMO the championship's problem is that it doesn't neatly fit with SL OR internationals. No one really wants it that much, as no one really wants second tier union. But as a freebee with the CC and England - which means you've already got some sort of RL infrastructure - then you might get a bit of use out of it, probably as filler and red button content that also allows the beeb to tick it's 'nations and regions' box.

[Moove]

6 minutes ago, SL17 said:

Let me try again. You base your opinion on using your experience of seeing RL on BBC.

My question? Is what channel could be used to show a championship game. Forgive my ignorance but we now have more than two.

I'd have thought most likely live streaming on the BBC Sport website like they do for the early Challenge Cup rounds and other minority sports, red button possibly as well.

Championship GF could make it to BBC2, maybe a couple of the bigger games as well but would no doubt be dependent on decent online viewing figures first. The figures I've seen banded about previously from the free Our League streams don't exactly make a good selling point.

[Tommygilf]

2 minutes ago, SL17 said:

This is my point. The BBC may carry the rights to the CC. Now if the rights of the lower tiers are picked up by the BBC they will then create the BBC floodlight trophy take two.

I don't think that's guaranteed at all, but should be what we should be working for

[sweaty craiq]

1 hour ago, Tommygilf said:

Thats kind of my point.

The Championship's value isn't large right now, but it has some stuff to build on. London, Leigh, Halifax, Bradford, Widnes are all former Super League clubs, teams like Toulouse and York are in fantastic facilities with clear Super League aspirations and within the next broadcast cycle we're almost certain to see an ambitious Ottawa and Newcastle in there too. That's not inherently unattractive, but could require either Super League or another attractive package such as the Challenge cup and/or internationals as the primary way to get the Championship some much needed exposure.

I agree internationals should be separate and above the club game, but their infrequency and the fact that the BBC are realistically the only people we'll consider for this are clearly limiting factors.

The cup is really the main thing in the "package B". Its regular and has essentially guaranteed Super League clashes. Positioning the Championship as a regular show to compliment the cup could be attractive.

Leigh v Widnes 2019 was the 33rd highest RL game on sky that year

[Tommygilf]

2 minutes ago, sweaty craiq said:

Leigh v Widnes 2019 was the 33rd highest RL game on sky that year

Sounds brilliant as it should be. 

[Liverpool Rover]

The article doesn’t really make it clear whether the RFL package is all together or if broadcasters can choose what they would like. If it is the latter than I’m not sure which channel will take the Championship and League 1 rights unless it is just rights for a weekly highlights show.

The packages do show the problems facing the game though. Ideally there should be at least two separate SL packages but as there will be only one broadcaster who will be interested there is no point. Internationals should be a separate package but international games are so infrequent broadcasters won’t pay much for them so would have to go together with the Cup. 

[Eddie]

1 hour ago, SL17 said:

You are still didn’t answer the question and stop being abrupt. 

A, that wasn’t abrupt, and B, you haven’t made it clear what your question is. 

[Eddie]

7 minutes ago, SL17 said:

Do you need sign language??  Again what BBC channel would like to see the lower tiers shown on? You comprehensively based your comment on the BBC without looking at alternative channels.

Are you half cut? I quite clearly said the BBC wouldn’t show it and then explained why nobody else would either. So in summary, no channel would show Championship rugby unless they were paid to do so. 

[Eddie]

5 minutes ago, SL17 said:

I asked why? You still haven’t answered it.

 

Because not enough people would want to watch it to make it worth their while. 

[THE RED ROOSTER]

If the championship and Championship 1 was ever to be viewed as a late night highlights package it would be on Yorkshire TV and Granada with maybe Border TV on  the ITV Platform. Regional stations for a regional sport.

It is a myth that BBC coverage of Super League is restricted to the north. In that even those of us who live in the garden of England can access this programme through digital TV in the same way I can watch BBC Scotland

[Eddie]

2 minutes ago, SL17 said:

That’s what SL along with SKY have done to the game. So you still want to go down the same lines in order that clubs survive on a shoestring for another 4/5! years? 
 

I’m sorry if  I have insulted you. But this needs sorting and not yes we’ll take that.

You haven’t insulted me, I just don’t think rights to championship games are worth a penny. I don’t want it to be like that, but as championship attendances suggest, there isn’t much of a market for it sadly. 

[Eddie]

7 minutes ago, SL17 said:

Fair enough. I do think the way forward for expansion and the game is through the lower tiers. But I’m more adamant sending these clubs to SL is suicidal.

Surely the entertainment is again building in the lower tiers. Will the BBC not enjoy the Ottawa Aces?

I think the lower leagues are great, especially the championship, but sadly no I don’t think the likes of the BBC or any national media could care less. The bbc barely even feature RL on their website and the attention that they give the weekly highlights show seems minimal, almost as if they’re forced to pay lip service to us. 

[GUBRATS]

The lower tiers should not be broadcast live other than the events , as in Summer Bash and the play offs 

There should be a highlights show , put together by the Clubs themselves if necessary

[Tommygilf]

13 minutes ago, GUBRATS said:

The lower tiers should not be broadcast live other than the events , as in Summer Bash and the play offs 

There should be a highlights show , put together by the Clubs themselves if necessary

On what, and for how much money?

[GUBRATS]

1 minute ago, Tommygilf said:

On what, and for how much money?

YouTube 

[Tommygilf]

9 minutes ago, GUBRATS said:

YouTube 

A fair area, but that won't make any money (and certainly not make up for the shortfall of being cut off from the super league deal)

[GUBRATS]

1 minute ago, Tommygilf said:

A fair area, but that won't make any money (and certainly not make up for the shortfall of being cut off from the super league deal)

Highlights should be separate from live content 

We currently only have the event games as I suggested broadcast anyway 

[Tommygilf]

1 minute ago, GUBRATS said:

Highlights should be separate from live content 

We currently only have the event games as I suggested broadcast anyway 

And who should they be broadcast by?

[GUBRATS]

Just now, Tommygilf said:

And who should they be broadcast by?

Whoever is willing to pay for them