Sky Sports+ and Rugby League: What we know so far (hijacked thread)

[crashmon]

I have sky q

with my work schedule, I watch approx 90% of my viewing (Sport or otherwise) on catch up, or by recording the game onto the box to watch later
Discovery plus usually keeps live sports it has covered available for a while after its been shown (I don't have tnt sports part of it, but I do have the eurosport stuff)

So this is really poor from SKY IMHO

[Damien]

The intention was always for these extra games to be on Sky Sports Plus when it launched later in the season. I think the issues people have revolve around Sky putting them on their normal channels before this launch and people getting used to this.

I do understand concerns about floating viewers not seeing these games and that they will be preaching to the converted.

[Gerrumonside ref]

The concerns are valid to me and it’s been a poor exercise in customer relations for many.

[Dave T]

24 minutes ago, Damien said:

The intention was always for these extra games to be on Sky Sports Plus when it launched later in the season. I think the issues people have revolve around Sky putting them on their normal channels before this launch and people getting used to this.

I do understand concerns about floating viewers not seeing these games and that they will be preaching to the converted.

I think the awareness piece is probably accepted, as you say it was known quite early we would end up tucked away. 

But pretty much all streaming services do have catchup on their live events (even SL+) - that's a bit of an anomaly. 

[Chrispmartha]

Just checked the EFL doesn’t have catchup on the app either .  Are their fans kicking off? I hope they are as they are the ones that will get listened to unfortunately.

Seems a stupid oversight to me

[Dave T]

7 minutes ago, Chrispmartha said:

Just checked the EFL doesn’t have catchup on the app either .  Are their fans kicking off? I hope they are as they are the ones that will get listened to unfortunately.

Seems a stupid oversight to me

I had a look at some of the EFL PR and it doesn't look like they have an option at all for delayed viewing I. E. Through their club or an EFL app like we have. 

[gingerjon]

7 minutes ago, Chrispmartha said:

Just checked the EFL doesn’t have catchup on the app either .  Are their fans kicking off? I hope they are as they are the ones that will get listened to unfortunately.

Seems a stupid oversight to me

Haven’t seen any about catch up issues. They seem to be having far more teething issues around basics like keeping the streams glitch free and, also, a couple of games (maybe more?) seem to have ended their streams before the match finished.

Those who had iFollow seem to think SS+ is better.

[gingerjon]

1 minute ago, Dave T said:

I had a look at some of the EFL PR and it doesn't look like they have an option at all for delayed viewing I. E. Through their club or an EFL app like we have. 

SS+ is a direct replacement for the previous EFL streaming service so they have literally nowhere else to go.

[Chrispmartha]

1 minute ago, Dave T said:

I had a look at some of the EFL PR and it doesn't look like they have an option at all for delayed viewing I. E. Through their club or an EFL app like we have. 

Ive just read a few comments it seems the EFL specifically didn’t sky to show on demand or catchup so that the clubs are able to do it themselves.

Maybe that’s part of the contract with Sky for us so that SL+ is the only place to get on demand games?

[Dave T]

Just now, gingerjon said:

SS+ is a direct replacement for the previous EFL streaming service so they have literally nowhere else to go.

I was surprised to see that SL clubs stream their own matches as part of their Wire TV or WiganTV type offerings. I expected EFL clubs to have an equivalent. 

[Dave T]

Just now, Chrispmartha said:

Ive just read a few comments it seems the EFL specifically didn’t sky to show on demand or catchup so that the clubs are able to do it themselves.

Maybe that’s part of the contract with Sky for us so that SL+ is the only place to get on demand games?

It doesn't like they offer this. Only internationally. 

Our clubs do it. 

[Chrispmartha]

Im kind of glad it’s not just is complaining, apparently tennis fans are annoyed as Amazon used to have catch up etc and its now moved to sky.

Pretty stupid for Tennis not to have catch up as aren’t a lot of tournaments abroad?

[gingerjon]

9 minutes ago, Dave T said:

It doesn't like they offer this. Only internationally. 

Our clubs do it. 

My error above. Just found a link to a full match replay of Bradford at Milton Keynes on their website. Need to log in so I assume you have to pay but it’s there.

[Dave T]

1 hour ago, gingerjon said:

My error above. Just found a link to a full match replay of Bradford at Milton Keynes on their website. Need to log in so I assume you have to pay but it’s there.

MY research did just involve picking a couple of random clubs - Cardiff offer no video - but they charge £2.50 a game for radio coverage!!!!

[Chrispmartha]

4 minutes ago, Dave T said:

MY research did just involve picking a couple of random clubs - Cardiff offer no video - but they charge £2.50 a game for radio coverage!!!!

Leeds United have full match replays on LUTV

[Dave T]

1 minute ago, Chrispmartha said:

Leeds United have full match replays on LUTV

Yep, looks like Blackburn offer full match replays for free.

[Chrispmartha]

Im amazed the Rhinos don’t have a pay ‘tv’ channel to be honest

[gingerjon]

9 minutes ago, Dave T said:

Yep, looks like Blackburn offer full match replays for free.

From the RL perspective then, it does look like SS+ does not need to build in match replays for its biggest audience (EFL football fans).

[Tommygilf]

8 minutes ago, Chrispmartha said:

Im amazed the Rhinos don’t have a pay ‘tv’ channel to be honest

The Rhinos leadership seems to be very much of the establishment tbh. I doubt they would go against Sky Sports or SL+.

[Dave T]

5 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

The Rhinos leadership seems to be very much of the establishment tbh. I doubt they would go against Sky Sports or SL+.

It does feel like a coordinated approach I. E. Delayed coverage on SL+ instead of club's own sites could be better. 

[gingerjon]

An important detail on Sky Sports + that I noticed this evening for the football.

They update on scores from other games.

[Dave T]

6 minutes ago, gingerjon said:

An important detail on Sky Sports + that I noticed this evening for the football.

They update on scores from other games.

Don't even go there. 

Although with no catchup you may as well give scores. 

 

[gingerjon]

1 minute ago, Dave T said:

Don't even go there. 

Although with no catchup you may as well give scores. 

 

As much as I put it there to ... well, y'know ... I do think it's another indicator that it really is just a set-up for live streaming and anything else is really just a lucky add-on.

[Dave T]

45 minutes ago, gingerjon said:

As much as I put it there to ... well, y'know ... I do think it's another indicator that it really is just a set-up for live streaming and anything else is really just a lucky add-on.

I think sometimes streaming is used unnecessarily as a reason/excuse for poor services. It doesn't really matter to most people what the actual mechanics of how the programme appears on their TV are.

The bit that gets overlooked too often for me is the user interface and experience - I have bad experiences every day with streaming services that are unnecessary. ITVX is shocking in that sometimes you don't know which episode you're up to and if you select the wrong one, you have to watch 3m of ads first, and if yiu move quickly to a different episode it's another 3m. AppleTV doesn't easily factor in that me and my wife have watched a series separately so confuses what episode were up to. Netflix browsing is awful. Prime offers me things to purchase but wants to email me to tell me how to purchase it instead of just letting me press a button and doing it. I broadly find iplayer excellent. 

Anyway, that's just a bit of a loosely related side rant, my point is that as a Sky Sports customer for 30 years+, we're being offered services that are poorer than we had in the 90s. And this is called progress. More quantity is good if it works for customers. 

[gingerjon]

3 minutes ago, Dave T said:

I think sometimes streaming is used unnecessarily as a reason/excuse for poor services. It doesn't really matter to most people what the actual mechanics of how the programme appears on their TV are.

The bit that gets overlooked too often for me is the user interface and experience - I have bad experiences every day with streaming services that are unnecessary. ITVX is shocking in that sometimes you don't know which episode you're up to and if you select the wrong one, you have to watch 3m of ads first, and if yiu move quickly to a different episode it's another 3m. AppleTV doesn't easily factor in that me and my wife have watched a series separately so confuses what episode were up to. Netflix browsing is awful. Prime offers me things to purchase but wants to email me to tell me how to purchase it instead of just letting me press a button and doing it. I broadly find iplayer excellent. 

Anyway, that's just a bit of a loosely related side rant, my point is that as a Sky Sports customer for 30 years+, we're being offered services that are poorer than we had in the 90s. And this is called progress. More quantity is good if it works for customers. 

I don't disagree with any of that.

Prime has just had an update which massively downgrades the functions that made it usable if you'd like to add that as well.