TV Deal to conclude end of June

[Tommygilf]

1 hour ago, Rugbyleaguesupporter said:

Viaplay are looking to sell, merge or close UK branch 

Story breaking 

Have they still got the Union URC too? 

[DI Keith Fowler]

17 hours ago, Tommygilf said:

Hopefully they were HD at least...

The streams were HD as in it was the correct resolution with that many pixels but the image clarity wasn't great and the colours were fairly washed out as I remember. It was a noticeable step down from watching something on Sky.

[Harry Stottle]

19 hours ago, Tommygilf said:

Does that 5k cover 6 to 8 camera angles, and presentation & commentary teams?

Do you get that at every game you attend, are you simultaneously in different places at the same time and is someone talking in your earnole continually?

Even seeing the game from a single perspective is better than relying on your minds eye in the reading of a match report, coaches have got by for years analysing both their and the opposition's team from a single camera, you young un's aren't half pampered these days Tommy

[Harry Stottle]

18 hours ago, Tommygilf said:

Hopefully they were HD at least...

See what I mean

[corkonian77]

2 hours ago, Tommygilf said:

Have they still got the Union URC too? 

Viaplay own the rights for the URC in the UK. 

 Premier Sports hold non exclusive TV rights for the Republic of Ireland. 

Premier Sports sold the UK operation to Viaplay. The Republic of Ireland operation were not part of the deal. 

[Impartial Observer]

4 hours ago, Rugbyleaguesupporter said:

Viaplay are looking to sell, merge or close UK branch 

Story breaking 

BBC say they have pulled out of UK sport now

[ATLANTISMAN]

10 minutes ago, Impartial Observer said:

BBC say they have pulled out of UK sport now

New CEO was the old CEO and his job is to make cuts and concentrate on their core Scandinavian market

 

P 

[corkonian77]

28 minutes ago, ATLANTISMAN said:

New CEO was the old CEO and his job is to make cuts and concentrate on their core Scandinavian market

 

P 

Premier Sports did well to off load their UK operations to them. 

As I said previously Premier Sports still exists in the Republic of Ireland.  Although a lot of their content was produced by Viaplay.  Rugby League on Premier Sports would use the Viaplay broadcast and just put on adds for Irish market. 

viaplay xtra was still available in the Republic of Ireland via a Free to Air dish. 

 

Edited July 20, 2023 by corkonian77

[Gerrumonside ref]

Wrong thread haha!

Edited July 20, 2023 by Gerrumonside ref

[Rugbyleaguesupporter]

Might need to update thread title to August....

[Chronicler of Chiswick]

1 hour ago, Rugbyleaguesupporter said:

Might need to update thread title to August....

What year?

[Spidey]

From the Warrington Guardian's interview with their Chairman, September is the new June by all accounts

 

Q: The game as a whole faces a crucial period, with IMG now on board and broadcast deals up for negotiation.

The TV deal still seems up in the air at the moment, so how big a concern is that not just for the club but for rugby league in general?

SM: Like all Super League clubs, we are faced with significant financial losses because of the pandemic and predominantly, the reduced central funding over the past two years.

As we stand today, we do not know what central funding we will receive next year from a broadcast deal – how can we set our budgets without this information?

I am told we will have communication within the next 10 days.

[DI Keith Fowler]

6 hours ago, Spidey said:

From the Warrington Guardian's interview with their Chairman, September is the new June by all accounts

 

Q: The game as a whole faces a crucial period, with IMG now on board and broadcast deals up for negotiation.

The TV deal still seems up in the air at the moment, so how big a concern is that not just for the club but for rugby league in general?

SM: Like all Super League clubs, we are faced with significant financial losses because of the pandemic and predominantly, the reduced central funding over the past two years.

As we stand today, we do not know what central funding we will receive next year from a broadcast deal – how can we set our budgets without this information?

I am told we will have communication within the next 10 days.

I advise you stop buying your calendars from that stall in Golden Square if you think Septembers in 10 days.

[Spidey]

8 hours ago, DI Keith Fowler said:

I advise you stop buying your calendars from that stall in Golden Square if you think Septembers in 10 days.

Don’t know what day it is do I

[ATLANTISMAN]

There is and was only ever one player in town however they are now playing hardball.

Streaming here we come 

[Rugbyleaguesupporter]

55 minutes ago, ATLANTISMAN said:

There is and was only ever one player in town however they are now playing hardball.

Streaming here we come 

We wont move wholesale to streaming, that would be financial suicide. 

We will no doubt take Sky money and probably add some  streaming money (low millions) 

Edited August 2, 2023 by Rugbyleaguesupporter
Clarity

[crashmon]

For SL we need to stay on TV which means SKY, just how low will the offier be   Below SL we have to accpet that TV is pretty much gone, and it will be only streaming going forward.

[Harry Stottle]

What are they hiding, this has been going on so long now I can only envisage heartache is coming.

[OnStrike]

21 minutes ago, Harry Stottle said:

What are they hiding, this has been going on so long now I can only envisage heartache is coming.

Yeah doesn't look good does it

[Dave T]

Delays like this aren't usually a good sign. 

Hopefully it is a sign that the new deal is more complex and maybe involves more partners. 

It'll be pretty disappointing if we get a standard 2 games per week Sky deal for £20m per year. 

[idrewthehaggis]

1 hour ago, Dave T said:

Delays like this aren't usually a good sign. 

Hopefully it is a sign that the new deal is more complex and maybe involves more partners. 

It'll be pretty disappointing if we get a standard 2 games per week Sky deal for £20m per year. 

Sadly as it stands now, such a deal seems optimistic.

It pretty leaves nothing outside SL-thus furthering relegation as a club killer.

Therefore how much could the alternatives raise?

 

 

[Eddie]

Clubs will have to stop relying so heavily on tv revenue and find ways generate more of their own income. More fans in the ground, more merch sales and so on. 

[Wellsy4HullFC]

19 minutes ago, Eddie said:

Clubs will have to stop relying so heavily on tv revenue and find ways generate more of their own income. More fans in the ground, more merch sales and so on. 

Every top professional sport relies on TV money.

[Toby Chopra]

56 minutes ago, Eddie said:

Clubs will have to stop relying so heavily on tv revenue and find ways generate more of their own income. More fans in the ground, more merch sales and so on. 

No, the solution is not for clubs to work harder individually, because it doesn't address the core problem, which is that the perception and recognition of rugby league as a whole is dwindling - or least stuck.

Instead, the sport collectively has to make itself more popular and relevant to wider audiences. Clubs of course have a part to play in that, but it's as part of a collective strategy.  

Edited August 2, 2023 by Toby Chopra

[Gerrumonside ref]

It’s a really bad time to be cutting a sports broadcasting deal unless you’re the Premier League or one of the big US sports.

I wonder what kind of control we are offering our broadcast partners to maximise the bang for their buck?

I do fear that while there might be multiple parties interested, the wider economic climate means we can’t create any kind of positive auction of rights.

Edited August 2, 2023 by Gerrumonside ref