BT sports

[Oldbear]

7 hours ago, Cheshire Setter said:

Are you Lee Briers?

Maybe he has a part time gig in a ZZ Top tribute band!

[Southerner]

I wonder if BT’s interest in Super League has anything to do with Amazon’s recent interest in Union?

Amazon are covering the Autumn Nations Cup which I’m sure BT were disappointed to lose out on.....

Competition for the rights can’t be a bad thing surely. 

[DI Keith Fowler]

On 05/11/2020 at 23:24, Gerrumonside ref said:

I agree that U.K. Rugby League appears to be getting squeezed by their portfolio, but there’s a lot more subscribers than BT Sports.

But If BT Sports partnered with a FTA broadcaster willing to simulcast games then it could give Super League some much needed public exposure.

Post-Covid there may even be a crowd bounce as people look to reassert themselves in public spaces.

FTA coverage would be a massive boost. Just picking up casual viewers is something rugby league struggles with. Union has built up an army of casual viewers who only really watch the six nations because it's on terrestrial TV.

We lack this audience of people who might only have a passing interest in the game but count towards the viewing figures and and might buy tickets to big events (CC, SL GF & internationals if we had any). 

[Man of Kent]

2 hours ago, Southerner said:

I wonder if BT’s interest in Super League has anything to do with Amazon’s recent interest in Union?

Amazon are covering the Autumn Nations Cup which I’m sure BT were disappointed to lose out on.....

Competition for the rights can’t be a bad thing surely. 

We produce great content people want to pay for. There bloody well ought to be competition

[gingerjon]

16 minutes ago, DI Keith Fowler said:

FTA coverage would be a massive boost. Just picking up casual viewers is something rugby league struggles with. Union has built up an army of casual viewers who only really watch the six nations because it's on terrestrial TV.

We lack this audience of people who might only have a passing interest in the game but count towards the viewing figures and and might buy tickets to big events (CC, SL GF & internationals if we had any). 

To replicate the interest generated by the Six Nations being on FTA, we would need to have internationals on FTA.

Which we already do.

We just don't play enough internationals.

[Hullfan]

On 05/11/2020 at 14:15, weloveyouwakefield2 said:

BT sports interested in the rugby league tv contract according to the sun...

I wouldn't believe anything the sun printed, not even the date. BT only Interested in big sports 

[del capo]

Does FTA have a long term future ? Or will pay for view be the new norm ( I can't watch Spitting Images without paying for it and that's a BBC/ ITV  production ) ?

Just asking........

[ATLANTISMAN]

FTA for sport has 100% NO long-term future as does Radio 1/2 and its been a long time coming.

 

P 

 

[DI Keith Fowler]

Just now, ATLANTISMAN said:

FTA for sport has 100% NO long-term future as does Radio 1/2 and its been a long time coming.

 

P 

 

What's that based on?

[ATLANTISMAN]

Just now, DI Keith Fowler said:

What's that based on?

Commercial reality

[Smudger06]

Live sport is the only thing that's going to keep free to air channels viable, they are definitely dead sooner without sport. 

[Oxford]

9 minutes ago, Smudger06 said:

Live sport is the only thing that's going to keep free to air channels viable, they are definitely dead sooner without sport. 

FTA channels need to stump up then, don't they?

[Smudger06]

Just now, Oxford said:

FTA cannels need to stump up then, don't they?

Indeed, they were shoulder barged out of contention for live sports rights in the early days. Lost confidence and money. They sure need to get back in the game though. 

[Toby Chopra]

43 minutes ago, ATLANTISMAN said:

FTA for sport has 100% NO long-term future as does Radio 1/2 and its been a long time coming.

 

P 

 

Not the case. 

Yes, subscription sport will remain the main revenue generator going forward, because more can be generated from keen fans willing to pay extra than from more general viewers on FTA. 

But more and more sports also realise that when you come off FTA entirely, you lose out longer term as the next generation of viewers and players is diminished. 

For example see cricket and union moving some of their content back onto FTA, while World Cups and Olympics will always remain FTA in most places as that's how they retain a brand image that transcends mere sport. 

FTA will be around for the foreseeable future. 

[weloveyouwakefield2]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/rugbyleague/article-8979497/Sky-Sports-BT-Sports-Super-League-2024.html

[Oxford]

On 05/11/2020 at 22:46, Gerrumonside ref said:

but a clear narrative to follow of the season as a fan on their broadcasts and a coherent system/structure backing up the organisation of the league that doesn’t change radically year on year.

Coo, I wish I had that much faith in the public's level perspicacity or could it be just point out what's not done in RL?

[Gerrumonside ref]

49 minutes ago, Oxford said:

Coo, I wish I had that much faith in the public's level perspicacity or could it be just point out what's not done in RL?

I guess what I mean is we can do worse than look at how other professional leagues create a narrative ‘a story of the season’ and become very good at telling that story again and again, adapting it where necessary.

This I believe is one of the cornerstones of the success of the NFL in markets outside America that are watching their broadcasts beyond the Super Bowl.

The US sports media are very good at ‘story-telling’ essentially allowing the audience to keep coming back for more long after their favourite side has fallen by the wayside in competitive terms.

I’m not saying Sky and the RL in the U.K. don’t try and do this in a way, but I do believe it’s key to attracting new viewers.  Then of course it makes hitting the sweet spot between patronising the hardcore and reaching out to a new audience critical.