Thursday, 31st May 2007
HEADLINES OF THE DAY
TV Troubles Could Impact on Indian Cricket Schedule
Several international cricket matches have been thrown into doubt because of the collapse of two broadcasting deals with Indian companies. Zee Sports says that it has pulled out of its five-year deal with the Board of Control for Cricket in India to show national team matches at neutral venues after failing to negotiate a discount on rights payment. Zee had agreed to pay $219 million to show at least 25 international matches involving India but the BCCI’s failure to confirm a schedule and legislation forcing it to share coverage with state broadcaster Doordarshan prompted a rethink.
The second Afro-Asian Cup, a series of one-day matches between representative sides from Africa and Asia in India, has also been hit by the withdrawal of a commercial partner in Nimbus Communications, the sports marketing and media company, and could now be postponed. The BCCI has shown a willingness to negotiate a reduced deal with Nimbus over the rights to India’s home one-day internationals and test matches, after Doordarshan was granted shared coverage, but is said not to have extended the same courtesy to Zee.
India are due to face South Africa in one-day internationals in Belfast on June 24, 26 and 29 and Pakistan in the Friendship Cup in Glasgow on July 3, but it is unlikely that the matches will go ahead unless a replacement broadcaster is found for Zee. Ashish Kaul, senior vice president of Zee Group, told PTI that ‘the attitude of the BCCI’ was responsible for the collapse of the deal, accusing the board of ‘double standards.’
However, Zee may have hindered its own cause by announcing the launch of a domestic Twenty20 competition involving top Indian and overseas players without first consulting the board. If the deal is not resurrected then it will be the second time in recent years that Zee and BCCI have been forced to tear up a contract.
Nimbus, which shows cricket on its Neo Sports Channel, could now launch a bid for the games at neutral venues, although it faces possible competition from pan-Asian sports broadcasters ESS and Ten Sports. It has however had a change of heart over the upcoming Afro-Asian Cup, declining to pay the agreed rights fee to the organisers partly because it is disappointed at the absence of top players from the games. It is thought that ESS could now be relied upon to show the matches in Bangalore and Chennai between June 6 and 10.
ESS recently secured the global rights to 18 ICC competitions, including two World Cups, in the next eight years in a deal worth $1.1 billion, but there is uncertainty over whether the contract has actually been signed. Concerns prevail over regulatory changes and Asian broadcasters are reassessing the value of cricket rights after television audiences and advertising sales for the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies and India's subsequent tour of Bangladesh failed to match expectations. Source: Sportcal, Indian Television, Economic Times of India, Financial Express, The Business Standard, 30th May 2007
Related Excerpts: Zee-BCCI Dropped Contract
Source: Hindustan Times, 31st May 2007
It was Zee’s failure to make money off the Kuala Lumpur tri-series last year, and the BCCI’s insistence that it share feed with Doordarshan, that finally did it for the deal. “The BCCI introduced the must-carry clause, which was not there in the initial contract. This made it compulsory for broadcasters to share the live feed with Doordarshan, causing huge commercial losses for broadcasters,” said Ashish Kaul, senior VP (marketing) of Essel Group, which owns Zee.
“Our bid was high but was recoverable. What we now have is someone running all over the countryside for a willing host with no planning and no time to warn advertisers of events, huge losses... then the mandatory sharing — it’s bad business.” Broadcasters the world over are upset with the I&B Ministry’s Sports Broadcasting Bill that makes it mandatory to share feed of all India games with Doordarshan, not just the games in India but also those abroad.
According to Board officials, initially, this agreement covered only terrestrial rights, which was acceptable, but the DTH telecast has caused a huge problem. “The signal is freely available on DTH to anyone and that is causing large-scale piracy, in India and neighbouring countries, so obviously broadcasters are upset. Why would people pay to watch when they get it free?,” said a Board official. An edgy BCCI, fearing just this situation — broadcaster pullouts — has asked the Ministry to encrypt the signal and have even offered to make the one-time payment for the expense involved.
Source: PTI report on DNA Sport, 30th May 2007
The much-maligned Afro-Asia Cup cricket tournament received a major setback with Nimbus pulling the plug on the telecast of matches. "We will not be part of the event in anyway. We will not be telecasting the event. Neither will we be producing nor bringing sponsorship for the matches," Nimbus chief Harish Thawani said. Nimbus' decision comes less than a week from the tournament, scheduled from June 6 to 10 in Bangalore and Chennai. Thawani implied the motive was the pull out of several stars from the series that features three one-dayers and a Twenty-20 international besides a women's tie between the teams from the two continents.
Source: Indian Express, 31st May 2007
First, Zee exercised an exit clause in their contract to call off their existing five-year off-shore telecast deal worth $ 219m, and later in the evening Nimbus—the Board’s partners in India—washed its hands off the Afro-Asian Cup, scheduled to be played in Bangalore and Chennai in the coming week. While the Zee pullout puts the entire Ireland tour — three India-South Africa one-day internationals and one ODI with Ireland — in jeopardy, not to mention the much-hyped five-year international deal, Nimbus chief Harish Thawani confirmed to The Indian Express, that “Nimbus would not produce or telecast the event (Afro-Asian Cup) at any price and will also not bring in any sponsorship for the matches.”
DID YOU KNOW…?
The United States of America claimed an unwanted tennis record on Wednesday when, for the first time in almost 40 years, they failed to qualify a male tennis player into the French Open second round. Eight of their nine players were eliminated on Tuesday leaving Robby Ginepri to salvage the situation with his match against Argentina's Diego Hartfield. But Ginepri's lost and confirmed that for the first time since the start of the Open era in 1968, there would be no American men in the second round. The last time such a depressing scenario engulfed the Americans in any Grand Slam was at the Australian Open in 1973. Source: Channel News Asia, 31st May 2007
SPORTS SHORTS
* Newly launched Venezuelan broadcaster, Televisora Venezolana Social (Teves), has acquired broadcasting rights to the Copa America due to take place in the country this year. The broadcaster will air ‘the majority’ of the tournament’s 26 games. The government said the move ensures that the games are available on free-to-air television across the country. Another public broadcaster, Venezolana de Televisión, will also air selected matches, as will Venevisión, one of Venezuela’s largest commercial networks. Source: Sportcal, 30th May 2007
* LG Electronics has agreed a sponsorship deal for the Copa America in Venezuela. LG president Daniel Kim and Venezuela's sports minister Eduardo Alvarez signed the agreement yesterday. The firm sponsored the last Copa America held in Peru in 2004. Nine stadiums will be equipped with high-resolution technology and tournament press rooms will be equipped with LG televisions and LG will provide giant screens in several Venezuelan cites so fans can watch matches outdoors. Source: Sportcal, 30th May 2007
* For one night only WWE will return to NBC. WWE matches will be back on June 2 for a 90-minute show. Running from 11:30 to 1am, the match-up will feature various champions in what is billed as the "strangest and smallest going head-to-head in a match that can only be seen to be believed." The two companies have a long history. NBC bought a stake in WWE in 2000, and the two partnered on the ill-fated XFL. NBC Universal also owns WWE's cable home, USA Network. A couple of Saturday night NBC runs per year were part of the contract when WWE's RAW moved to USA. Source: Broadcasting & Cable, 29th May 2007
* Competition between IPTV and cable/satellite TV is heating up in Asia, with IPTV poised to gain significant market share over the next years, reports In-Stat. With the help of IPTV, incumbent telcos have the opportunity to fundamentally change customers’ video experience from traditional video streaming to downloading and watching TV. There were 2.7 million IPTV subscribers in Asia in 2006, and is expected to exceed 33 million by 2012. Source: Advanced Television, 30th May 2007
* The Trophy of Champions, French soccer’s pre-season game between the winners of the top-tier Ligue 1 and the French Cup, is confirmed to take place in China this year. The decision has been taken to stage the game in Tianjin because league champions Olympique Lyonnais and cup holders Sochaux are both holding training camps in Asia at the time. Source: Sportcal, 30th May 2007
* The 2nd Asian Indoor Games and the Olympic Council of Asia signed an agreement with China online media company SINA Corporation. Under the deal, SINA becomes the Official Sponsor and Internet Sponsor for Macau 2007 and has won the exclusive rights to host, develop and operate the Official Games website. The 2nd biennial Asian Indoor Games will be hosted in Macao, from 26 October to 3 November 2007, consisting of 17 sports with 2 demonstration sports, with expected NOC participation from 45 countries throughout Asia. Source: Sport Business, 30th May 2007
* UK pay-television operator, BSkyB, has extended its deal to show live home matches of the Welsh national soccer team until the end of the 2011-12 season. BSkyB has shown Wales’ matches since 2004 and is understood to have offered £13 million ($25.8 million) plus a bonus of £750,000 for every match against a major country to the Football Association of Wales to retain the rights from 2008 onwards. The competition came from BBC Wales, which submitted a bid of £10 million, similar to what BSkyB has paid under its current four-year deal. Source: Sportcal, EUFootball.biz, 30th May 2007
* The International Ice Hockey Federation has extended its commercial partnership with Infront Sports for the annual world championship to 2017. The current deal was not due to expire until 2011. Infront is responsible for the global distribution of marketing and media rights to the world championship and the host broadcaster of the event. The IIHF estimates the contract with the agency will help it to earn more than SFr200 million ($164 million) over ten years. The 2008 world championships will be held in Canada for the first time. Source: Sportcal, 30th May 2007
* Online gaming provider bwin is partnering Cellectivity, a UK mobile gaming and betting content provider, to distribute a version of PokerRoom.com: the first live multi-player mobile poker application of its kind, allowing mobile users to play poker against real online players. Cellectivity’s agreement with 3 and T-Mobile will position bwin at the forefront of the fast-growing mobile gaming market. The application features a play-for-fun version that gives players an opportunity to pit their skills against real online players. Source: Content Futures, 30th May 2007
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Laos/Rights: NVCSports to Organise First International Cycle Race In Laos
NVCSports Ltd was appointed by the Government of Lao People's Democratic Republic to organise the country’s first ever international cycle race in Laos this November 2007. The Tour of Laos has the full support of the Lao Government, the Civic Authorities along the route and the Lao Cycling Federation. The race will comply with the rules and regulations of Union Cycliste Internationale and will be included on the Asian Calendar of UCI.
The race dates are planned so that the race ends just before the start of the South East Asia Games allowing teams from countries that are eligible for the Games, a last minute opportunity to improve their skills before the start of the Games. The competing teams are being invited from many countries in Asia, who will face tough competition from top teams from Europe, America, Africa, Oceania and Australasia.
The race route has yet to be finalised but it will embrace parts of the scenic Laos, as well as focusing on the ancient Royal City of Luang Prabang and the present capital city - Vientiane. It is anticipated that this race will generate much media interest worldwide as it will be the largest sporting event in Laos’ recent history and it will help prepare Laos, in hosting the South East Asian Games in 2009. NVCSports is working closely with Pulse8 Media to give the race maximum media coverage regionally and internationally.
Pulse8 Media aims to provide live coverage of Tour of Laos via ESPN Start Sports, distributed via 13 Asian regions and reaching 164 million households. Pulse8 Media also plans to produce two documentaries which focus around recent history and developments in Laos that will be distributed via National Geographic and Discovery, televised up to 170 countries and produced 35 languages worldwide. Source: Sport Business, 30th May 2007
Singapore/Broadcaster: SingTel to Focus on Boosting Content
SingTel says it will focus on boosting content for its upcoming internet protocol television or IPTV service. This follows feedback from users who took part in a six-month trial which ended in April. When launched later this year, IPTV users will be able to watch TV programmes and buy videos through their broadband connection, accessed via a set-top box connected to their TV sets. SingTel is still keeping mum about the exact launch date of its upcoming IPTV service as well as the content line-up and price plans.
But the telco took pains at a news briefing on Wednesday to differentiate its service from other existing pay TV offerings. It stressed that IPTV will be more than just watching TV on the computer, like MobTV, or transferring PC content to the TV set, like M2B World. But the battle for content will be fierce. And for SingTel, it is expected to be a big challenge as it has already been outbid by StarHub for rights to broadcast the hugely-popular English Premier League football matches for the next three years.
Analysts say the success of IPTV is critical for SingTel as the service allows the telco to take on StarHub head-on on all three services - TV, data and voice. StarHub has gained market share in recent years, through its "hubbing" strategy of packaging the three services. The Media Development Authority gave SingTel the go-ahead in January this year to launch its commercial pay TV service. Source: Tech One HDTV Blog, 30th May 2007
Elsewhere/Rights: 'Eleventh Hour' for ARD and ZDF Euro 2008 Negotiations
Time is running out for ARD and ZDF to agree a deal with Sportfive for rights of the Euro 2008 European Championships. With just over a year before Euro 2008 kicks off, the broadcasters have said that a deal needs to be signed urgently to allow them preparation time to book studios, hotels and cables in Austria and Switzerland. Sportfive was originally said to be targeting €160 million ($214.9 million) from the German market but combined bids from ARD and ZDF have yet to exceed the €100-million mark, despite months of negotiation.
ZDF was said to be prepared to increase the broadcasters’ combined maximum bid of €100 million for rights, but ARD adopted a strategy of patiently negotiating, believing that the asking fee will fall. A lack of exclusivity on offer to pay-television operators has dampened the bidding war that Sportfive had hoped for in order to reach its initial target for the German market. Source: Sportcal, 30th May 2007
Wednesday, 30th May 2007
SPORTS SHORTS
* Doordarshan says it will likely start HD transmissions next year. Doordarshan chief executive Baljit Singh Lalli said the broadcaster was considering introducing high-definition broadcasts from 2008 in Delhi, extending to India’s six largest cities by 2010 to coincide with the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games. The broadcaster’s DVB-H trial, launched recently in Delhi, is likely to be extended to Mumbai, Kolkata and Chenai shortly. The number of channels is also likely to be raised, from eight to ten or even 15 channels. Source: Rapid TV News, 29th May 2007
* India’s Telecoms Regulatory Authority has rapped the knuckles of some cable operators. TRAI has reiterated that all Indian cable operators must carry the signals of state broadcaster Doordashan, after receiving notice that some operators are not making all of DD’s channels available. Operators who do not carry the channels risk prosecution. The order comes ahead of DTH package DD Direct’s switch from the NSS-6 satellite to Insat-4B from June 1, which could also cause problems for some smaller operators. Source: Rapid TV News, Business Line, DNA India, 29th May 2007
* The Football Association of Malaysia has been formally instructed to cancel a match between a select team and English club Manchester United in Kuala Lumpur on June 27 as it clashes with the Asian Cup, for which Malaysia is one of the four hosts. However, Fifa has given permission for the country to stage the Champions Youth Cup from August 5 to 19. The event had been in doubt because it is supported by the G14, the group of top European clubs, which is not recognised by governing bodies. Source: Sportcal, 29th May 2007
* Fifa will proceed with negotiations with the African Union of Broadcasting, which represents the continent’s main television channels as it seeks to conclude a television rights deal for the next World Cup in the sub-Saharan region. Any deal will relate to the television coverage of Fifa tournaments in 42 territories in the next three years, including the World Cup in South Africa in 2010. Agreements are already in place with state broadcaster SABC in South Africa and Jordan-based Arab Radio and Television in northern Africa. Source: Sportcal, 29th May 2007
* The decision by Fifa to ban international matches from being played at altitudes over 2,500 metres above sea level has been heavy criticised by several South American countries. Fifa’s executive committee ruled there were medical concerns over playing at high altitudes because the thin air makes breathing difficult and strains the hearts of those not acclimatised. Fifa president Sepp Blatter said: ‘I know there will be complaints about this, especially from South America, but the health of the players has to come first. Source: Sportcal, 29th May 2007
* UEFA president Michel Platini asked the G14 group of European football clubs to disband and drop a number of lawsuits it is supporting. The G14 represents 18 European clubs and has come up against FIFA in its backing for court cases brought by clubs asking for compensation for players injured whilst on international duty. Platini announced the creation of a new body to represent club interests, the Professional Football Strategy Council and asked the G14 to join the council, rather than continue as a separate body. Source: Sport Business, Sportcal, 29th May 2007
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Asia/Elsewhere/Broadcaster: Eurosport Events Partners with New Oceanic Race
Eurosport Events, a new subsidiary of Eurosport Group, agreed a partnership with SailingOne for the development of the SolOceans, a new single-handed oceanic round the world competition that will depart from France to New Zealand. Through this agreement, Eurosport Events becomes the Media Partner of the SolOceans and of the other sailing events organised by SailingOne (the Trophée Clairefontaine des Champions de Voile and the Final of the French Solo Offshore Racing Championship – Course des Falaises).
Eurosport will handle the international distribution of worldwide media rights. These events will also receive extensive coverage through Eurosport's network on Eurosport, Eurosport World (Asia-Pacific), Eurosport 2, Eurosportnews and eurosport.com's sites. The start of the first SolOceans is set for 25 October 2009. The SolOceans will then be run every two years. Beforehand, the first Veolia Oceans® will sail around the world for reconnaissance purposes, from October 2007 to March 2008. Source: Sport Business, 29th May 2007
Elsewhere/Rights: Fast Track Strike Gold for 2010 Commonwealth Games
Fast Track, the broadcast rights, sponsorship and event marketing agency, was appointed to represent the International Broadcast Rights by the Organising Committee of the Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games.
Announcing the appointment in Delhi, Mr Suresh Kalmadi MP, Chairman of the Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games Organising Committee, said, “Following a very open and highly competitive tender process we have appointed Fast Track because of their long and very successful track record of delivering revenue and distribution targets for many Commonwealth Games.”
Fast Track’s Edward Leask said, “We are extremely honoured to have been appointed by the Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games Organising Committee and we look forward to building on the huge success that we were able to achieve for the Organising Committee of the 2006 Games in Melbourne.”
Fast Track and its predecessor API – both owned by former Olympians Alan Pascoe MBE and Edward Leask – have had an involvement with every Commonwealth Games since 1990. The most recent being the Melbourne 2006 Games for which Fast Track delivered record levels of rights income and broadcast distribution not only within the 71 Commonwealth nations and territories but from such non-Commonwealth countries as the United States of America, the Middle East and across much of Europe. Source: Sport Business, Sportcal, 29th May 2007
Elsewhere/General: European Tour Considers Joining Forces with Other Tours
Golf’s European Tour is reported to be planning to join forces with other world tours in order create a really attractive international schedule. European Tour chief executive George O'Grady said the "idea of amalgamating with other tours to put on a really attractive schedule, by whatever name we call it, is one we are in the final stages of refining. We respond to the wishes of the rest of the world; the Australasian Tour, South Africa, Asian Tour and Japan coming together, as long as we identify the key tournaments. I think we are absolutely down the line on that discussion."
However, O'Grady stressed any new amalgamated Tour would not be called a world tour. "We will be administering it and there might be a name change. We are the European Tour and we are working with all our partners to make, I would say, a strong alternative to the PGA Tour." Source Sport Business, Sportcal, 29th May 2007
Tuesday, 29th May 2007
SPORTS SHORTS
* The Bangladesh government has given permission to operate 26 free-to-air and 10 pay channels through down linking in the country. Newly included free-to-air channels include: Real Madrid TV, Arirang, DD Sports and Al-Jazira Sports. The pay channels include: Ten Sports and AXN. The decision was subjected to license approval under provisions of Cable Television Network Management Act - 2006. The decision was taken at a meeting held in the ministry of information with additional secretary Syed Hasinur Rahman in the chair. Source: The New Nation Bangladesh, 27th May 2007
* Ten Sports has signed and implemented a new multiyear deal with Intelsat, and in so doing has increased its transponder capacity by 50%. The new contract replaces a previous one in place since 2001. The sports channel now beams channels from 27 MHz on the same satellite. Chris McDonald, CEO of Taj TV/Ten Sports, stated, 'I am very pleased to move our portfolio of channels on to the expanded transponder capacity, giving us the ability to launch additional channels across our markets from Australia over to the UK.' Source: AME Info, 28th May 2007
* Southeast Asian information ministers have endorsed Digital Video Broadcasting-Terrestrial as the uniform standard for the region, a move expected to make digital broadcasting technology affordable in Southeast Asia. Brunei had been pushing for adoption of a common digital broadcasting standard. Under the content-sharing project, more than 600 television programmes were exchanged among Asean members last year. Some had received recognition from the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union's annual TV awards. Source: Asia Pacific Broadcasting Union Official, 25th May 2007
* Nokia expects to start selling phones for China's 3G mobile TD-SCDMA technology in early 2008, when the network operational. Beijing earlier extended pre-commercial testing of its TD-SCDMA standard to 10 cities from the original five. With a potential $10 billion of network equipment orders in the balance, global players such as Nokia Siemens Networks, Motorola, Ericsson and Nortel Networks have jumped onto TD-SCDMA. The industry is still awaiting official launch of 3G licenses in China, which could be pushed back until 2008. Source: Telecom Asia, 29th May 2007
* Nokia launched a service enabling Chinese users to download English lessons using their mobile phones, in an effort to tap into a growing fascination with English in the world's top wireless market. Nokia plans to charge users for the new, made-for-China service, called Mobiledu. The service includes both audio and text-based lessons, aimed to capitalize on China's enormous language-learning market as the Chinese embrace global business and prepare for an influx of foreign visitors during next year's Olympic games in Beijing. Source: Wall Street Journal, 28th May 2007
* Derby County won promotion to the Premier League for the first time since 2002 yesterday after beating West Bromwich Albion 1-0 in a second division Playoff Final at Wembley Stadium. The match, worth an estimated £60mil (US$119mil) to the winners in terms of increased TV revenue, gate receipts and sponsorships, is regarded as the single richest one-off match in world soccer. It was a highly competitive match from start to end. The only goal came from Stephen Pearson who turned the ball in from close range after 61 minutes. Source: The Star Malaysia, 29th May 2007
* Mastercard's World Cup sponsorship has been brought into question after a US court ruling. Last year, a US District Judge ruled that Mastercard and not Visa should win an eight-year contract to sponsor the World Cup. An appeals court has ruled that the lower court Judge needs to revisit the case to clarify a some points, including whether a 2006 contract between Fifa and Mastercard superseded one from 2002. Mastercard said it was looking forward to the judge's ruling, while Visa said it was following the case with interest. Source: BBC News, Reuters, 27th May 2007
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Taiwan/Broadcaster: TBS to Launch HDTV in 2008
Taiwan Broadcasting System (TBS), a non-profit consortium of terrestrial TV broadcasters set up to provide TV and radio programmes of public interest in Taiwan, has announced the commencement of a two-year project to promote high definition TV (HDTV). Broadcasts are to begin for some selected areas via Channel 30 in the second half of 2008. The project is sponsored by the Taiwanese government in line with its policy of completing the digitalisation of terrestrial TV broadcasts in 2010.
TBS, under the project, will be establishing HDTV networks around Taiwan and digital databases and commissioning new programmes, as well as conducting mobile TV and radio broadcast data system (RBDS) experiments. TBS expects an estimated 300,000 users will possess HDTV sets one year after the beginning of the broadcast, reports Digitimes. Source: Asia Pacific Broadcasting Union Official, 24th May 2007
India/Broadcaster: Nimbus Bats on a Sticky Wicket
Time is running out for Nimbus. With a host of payouts scheduled in the immediate term, the next month poses a challenging time for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) rights holder. The company has to pay up a bank guarantee of Rs 519 crore to the BCCI by June 30. The company also has to dish out close to $10 million for the recently concluded India-Bangladesh series and $8 million for the upcoming Afro-Asia series.
Nimbus is believed to be aggressively talking to a number of banks to raise close to Rs 500 crore. However, the going is not easy, with most bankers taking their time to scrutinise Nimbus’ broadcasting arm Neo Sports’ business model before giving any final commitment.
Meanwhile, sources reveal that Nimbus is in talks with BCCI to reduce the rights acquisition amount from $612 million, in lieu of the losses incurred by the company due to the encryption row. An official with a public sector bank said, “Nimbus is trying to reduce its obligation towards BCCI, which will effectively reduce the bank guarantee amount. Once the amount is reduced, Nimbus will not find it very tough in fulfilling BCCI’s requirements.”
Bankers who had previously furnished bank guarantees, were taking a hard look at the sport’s company’s business model, and seemed reluctant in being guarantors. Bankers feel that the revenue model of Nimbus needs to be re-examined and that the collaterals provided are not as strong as last year. Bankers also say that the guarantees provided last year were given to Nimbus, where as this year it will be given to Neo Sports, which is viewed as a high-risk proposition, considering the volatility of the sports business.
But Nimbus sources reveal that BCCI would waive over Rs 300 crore, as compensation for the tenure of the contract until 2010. However, it is not likely that BCCI’s waiver would exceed Rs 150 to 200 crore. Nimbus sources say that the contract had a clause which says any change in material circumstances due to the order of the government or any other regulatory body that impacts Nimbus’ revenue, “BCCI would provide Nimbus reasonable and appropriate substantial reduction in compensation and other support”. Source: The Economic Times India, 29th May 2007
China/Business: FedEx Delivers Badminton into Offices
Federal Express has launched a through-the-line brand campaign titled "The China Badminton Team vs The Inefficient Office" starting today, targeting receptionists, clerks and secretaries. The campaign, which runs for 18 months, aims to create top-of-mind awareness with FedEx's target audience which include CEOs, CFOs and managers who make decisions on which courier to use.
BBDO China has been tasked to develop the creative for FedEx and as major sponsor of the China Badminton Team, the courier company wanted to feature the players and the head coach in the advertising. "Therein lies the challenge: how can this still make sense in our ads? Our solution- have the China Badminton Team provide the answer to office problems, almost as if they're management consultants, in the best way they know how- with a smash of the badminton racket," Keat Soh, creative director of BBDO China said.
The agency came up with the creative featuring the China badminton team but with the action taking place inside an office rather than the badminton court. The campaign will run in TVCs, print and OOH, as well as interactive advertising in key cities throughout the country. OMD Shanghai handled the media buying and planning duties. Source: Marketing Hong Kong, 28th May 2007
Monday, 28th May 2007
DID YOU KNOW…?
Malaysian cinemas have found a powerful new weapon in their fight against movie pirates -- military-style night-vision goggles. After showing people to their seats, trained ushers are strapping on the goggles and scanning darkened cinemas around the country to spot anyone trying to make illegal copies of movies with hand-held video recorders or mobile phones.
The Motion Picture Association, which is training Malaysian ushers to catch the pirates, said cinemas had caught 17 people in the past two months, during which Hollywood studios released blockbusters like "Spider-Man 3" and "Pirates of the Caribbean." "All of the cases were spotted with night-vision goggles," the association's Malaysia manager, Nor Hayati Yahaya, said on Friday. "Its very successful."
Malaysia figures on the U.S. watchlist for movie and software piracy, but local authorities have launched a major crackdown on producers and retailers of illegal DVDs since the country began free-trade talks with the United States a year ago. The association, which represents the big Hollywood studios, recently brought to Malaysia two dogs trained to sniff out DVDs -- with stunning results. The two Labradors, Lucky and Flo, have sniffed out more than a million DVDs and broken a fake DVD ring. They have been so successful that authorities believe Malaysian pirates have put a bounty on the dogs' heads. Source: Reuters, 25th May 2007
INFO BOX
Sports Plus Entertainment, the Winning Recipe for Sports Channels
Source: Full Article on Exchange4Media, 28th May 2007
Media gurus have time and again said that people watch shows, not channels. The thought is probably the most appropriate in the case of sports channels. Going by the performance of various channels in the sports genre in 2007, there rarely appears to be any channel loyalty. A sports channel is as good as its last cricket property performance. The only one to buck the cricket trend is Ten Sports -- a clear leader on any non-cricket day. However, for that channel, too, all points are coming from WWE -- which is more of entertainment than sports.
The ratings graphs show a tough fight in the genre in the first month. The reasons: India-South Africa Test series which gave Star Sports some very high numbers; then both the Hero Honda Cup between India and Sri Lanka, and the Pepsi Cup between India and West Indies gave newly launched Neo Sports a leadership position in the genre. ESPN had its share with the Commonwealth Tri-Series that gave the channel its weeks of highs in the first two months. The battle, with all these properties, was a tough one between these sports channels; channels like Zee Sports, DD Sports and Neo Sports Plus lay low.
In the following period, almost all channels were playing around the same region, ESPN and Star Sports performing a little better than the other channels, but the clear leader with some distance is Ten Sports.
Experts believe that at present, the current numbers of any channel are reflective of how mass they can get. Argued Porwal, “Ten Sports is getting numbers from something that is not even in their genre -- WWE is entertainment, not sports. We are seeing this mish-mash of genre, across genre -- you want to see what you want to see on your channel, then watching it on everyone’s channel. If you are a sports person, you want to see entertainment on your channel.”
Ratings may make the difference but the formula that seems to be working -- when a channel cannot be cricket dependent -- is to induce entertainment or sports entertainment on the channel.
SPORTS SHORTS
* Deloitte's Sports Business Group will publish the 16th Annual Review of Football Finance on May 30th. The report will seek to answer key questions concerning the future of the game. The finances of English football clubs will hit new heights with the new television rights deals bringing an additional £300m for the 20 Premier League clubs. “Where will the money go? Will we see soaring salaries? Will it translate into bigger profits? Can clubs in Italy, Spain, Germany and France keep up?” The full report is only available from Deloitte in hard copy. Source: Sport Business, 25th May 2007
* TF1 and M6 are the winners of French television rights to Euro 2008. French sports daily L’Equipe claimed yesterday that TF1 and M6 would pay €50 million ($67.1 million) each for the rights. Rights for the 2004 European Championships were shared between TF1 and France Télévisions, the public-service broadcaster, in a deal worth a reported €69 million. Source: Sportcal, ABC Money UK, 25th May 2007
* A new international motor racing series will launch in Asia next year intending to build popularity of the sport in the region. The GP2 Asia Series is an offshoot of the GP2 Series, the support series to Formula 1, with races from January to April. It will be held in league with the Speedcar Series, a stock car championship featuring 24 identical cars and ex-Formula 1 drivers including Jean Alesi, starting in November. The ‘Grand Racing’ events featuring GP2 Asia Series and Speedcar Series races is planned to support some F1 rounds in Asia. Source: Sportcal, 25th May 2007
* Flemish public broadcaster VRT has acquired the TV rights for home matches of the Belgian football team in qualifying for the 2008 Euro and the 2010 World Cup. VRT reached a deal with the Belgian Football Association, breaking a deadlock. Before the start of the 2008 Euro qualifying campaign, a bid of €240,000 per game for 15 home matches was made but the FA refused the offer saying it was insufficient and that it would sell rights for matches separately. Rights for the international against Kazakhstan in August 2006 were sold for €50,000 to commercial station VTM. Source: Flanders News, 25th May 2007
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Elsewhere/Business: Eurosport Events Targets Sports with ‘Room to Grow’
Eurosport Events, the recently-launched subsidiary of Eurosport, has said it will target smaller sports or those which are not professionally organised as it seeks to establish itself in the events market. Jacques Béhar, the president and chief executive of Eurosport Events, told Sportcal.com: ‘We will choose events that are not necessarily big, so we can grow together, or sports that are not necessarily very well organised.
Béhar said the venture would be of ‘reasonable size’ but that it was essentially a ‘developer’ and was not looking to take over other companies in the sector. ‘Rather than just owning the media rights, we can provide a complete platform of communication to our clients – online, on air and onsite. It’s also a way of developing Eurosport. ‘We know sport. So we can find the best platform to promote the appeal for television.’
Eurosport Events is already involved in motor sport’s FIA World Touring Car Championship and the Intercontinental Rally Challenge, the International Formula Master and the CIK-FIA European Karting Championship. Eurosport Events is involved in equestrianism’s Global Champions Tour and today announced a partnership with organiser SailingOne for the development of the new SolOceans sailing event.
Eurosport Events will manage every aspect of the organisation of its events, from television production to media rights distribution, via Eurosport’s own media operations and through sublicensing. The division will be made up of experts in events organisation, television production, marketing, communication, and finance. Source: Sportcal, 25th May 2007
South Korea/Broadcaster: Digital TV Broadcasts by 2012
South Korea will discontinue analog television broadcasting by the end of 2012 at the latest and will allow only digital services thereafter, the finance ministry said Friday. The transition will cost 2.35 trillion won (US$2.5 billion; €1.86 billion), of which TV stations will need to invest 2.24 trillion won (US$2.4 billion; €1.78 billion), the ministry said in a statement.
S. Korean TV stations have offered both analog and digital TV services since October 2001 and will now be asked to phase out terrestrial analog broadcast over the next five years. "High-definition digital TVs offer better viewing quality and interactive services," it said. The digital transition will also help create 980,000 jobs and add US$38.7 billion (€28.78 billion) to the country's exports, the ministry said. The ministry will submit legislation outlining the transition in July. Source: Inquirer Technology, 26th May 2007
Friday, 25th May 2007
HEADLINE OF THE DAY
Biaggi: I Might be Here Forever!
With almost half his debut World Superbike season complete, Max Biaggi has stated his desire to remain in the championship 'for some years' and that he now has only a passing interest in MotoGP. Biaggi concluded a 14-year grand prix career at the end of 2005, following a fall-out with Honda, and sat out the whole of 2006 before starting a new career in World Superbikes.
The former four-times 250cc world champion spectacularly won his first ever WSBK race and only lost second in the championship to Noriyuki Haga last time out at Monza, when the Roman nonetheless scored his eighth podium from twelve races. During his first WSBK event on home soil, Biaggi was asked by Worldsbk.tv if he wanted to return to MotoGP or stay in World Superbike.
"It's good [here]," replied Max. "I really enjoy it. I like this kind of atmosphere; the two race format is good and Superpole is really challenging. Nothing is wrong for me to be here for some time. I really like it and I want to be part of this for some years. It depends. I'm staying with Suzuki Corona Alstare for this year, but for the future nothing is decided yet; we'll see. I might be here forever, who knows!"
Biaggi was then asked if he'd followed MotoGP much this season; "A little," responded the #3. "Not much, really, because it doesn't make me so interested as before, but I watch a little bit. Ducati has been very fast, Yamaha too... Honda a little bit struggling, but the championship is only starting - so many races to go - so it's too early to say something." Biaggi will be back in action this weekend at Silverstone, when he will again be chasing his second SBK victory. Source: Crash.net, 24th May 2007
SPORTS SHORTS
* Casio Computer Co., Ltd., the world's leading manufacturers of consumer electronics products, has signed an agreement with CONMEBOL to become an official sponsor of Copa America 2007 Venezuela and Copa Nissan Sudamericana, two of the largest events in Latin American Football. Casio is an official sponsor of both events for timepieces, calculators, digital cameras and musical instruments. Source: Business Wire, Hispanic PR Wire, 23rd May 2007
* Next season's Trophee des Champions, the French domestic season’s curtain-raiser, could be played in China. Sochaux, the Coupe de France winner, will tackle Ligue 1 Orange champion Olympique Lyonnais. Sochaux's official website, FCSochaux.fr, claims the match could take place in China on July 24 and claims the French Football Federation and authorities in China are already in agreement, while the French league and France’s television stations will discuss the matter. The match would kick off at 21:00 in China (15:00 French time) and claims 250 million people will watch the game on Chinese television. Source: Football Insider, 24th May 2007
* 1.Bundesliga champion, VfB Stuttgart, has earned a major cash windfall this season. The club has earned an estimated 80% more from television revenue than for the whole of the 2005-06 season. This is due to a new lucrative broadcasting deal that came into force this season, which will net the Swabians €26.12 million, according to an Ernst & Young report. Stuttgart can also expect to earn around €20 million extra next season, having qualified for the UEFA Champions League. Source: Football Insider, 24th May 2007
* WCSN, a US broadband internet website, has agreed a deal to join IPTV services offered as part of the FISION IPTV basic line-up. WCSN’s 24-hour channel will launch in Houston and continue to roll out to other FISION markets, taking advantage of FISION’s combination of video, voice and high-speed internet services to deliver coverage of over 60 sports, concentrating on Olympic and lifestyle sports. WCSN covers world championships in athletics, rhythmic and artistic gymnastics, skiing and snowboarding and table tennis among others. Source: Sportcal, 24th May 2007
* A new study has shown that 35% of software installed in 2006 on personal computers globally was pirated. This leads up to an estimated USD 40 billion in losses. China was the hotbed of rampant piracy, however the country has seen a 10% reduction this year alone, the first time it has happened in three years. These results are drived by the Business Software Alliance (BSA) study conducted independently by IDC. Source: SDA Asia, 17th May 2007
* The Premier League will go ahead with preparations for next season’s fixture list despite agreeing to set up an arbitration tribunal to rule on relegated Sheffield United’s complaints over the Carlos Tevez affair which is not likely to conclude before the end of June. The League will publish fixtures for the new season on June 21 and is preparing to do so on the basis that Sheffield United has been relegated and West Ham remains in the top flight. Source: Football Insider, 24th May 2007
* Moscow has been awarded table tennis’ 2010 World Team Championships, following the withdrawal of the other candidate, Austria. Moscow’s bid called for a table tennis festival to be staged in Red Square. The tournament itself is scheduled to take place from May 23 to 30, 2010. The next world team championships will take place in Guangzhou, China from February 24 to March 2 next year. Meanwhile, Hohot in China has beaten competition from Sweden, France and New Zealand to win the right to host the 2010 world veteran championships. Source: Sportcal, 24th May 2007
MORE NEWS
Elsewhere/Rights: Sale of French Euro 2008 TV Rights Close to Fruition
Commercial broadcasters TF1 and M6 will be confirmed tomorrow as winners of French television rights to Euro 2008, soccer’s European Championships. French sports daily L’Equipe claims that Uefa will make an announcement on Friday, with TF1 and M6 set to pay €50 million ($67.4 million) each to share the rights to the tournament. The expected award comes after a lengthy stand-off over the cost of the rights.
It was first reported in December that TF1 and M6 were to split the rights in France after a second round of bidding failed to produce an outright winner. TF1 and M6 were the only two broadcasters to respond to the original tender but submitted offers deemed significantly lower than the fee required by the international sports agency Sportfive, which is marketing the European broadcast rights on behalf of Uefa.
Sportfive had targeted a fee of €100 million for the broadcast rights in France, which it now appears to have secured. It is understood that TF1 and M6 will have the rights to show simultaneous coverage of France's matches in the tournament, assuming the national team qualifies. Rights for the 2004 European Championships were shared between TF1 and France Télévisions, the public-service broadcaster, in a deal worth a reported €69 million. Source: Sportcal, 24th May 2007
Thursday, 24th May 2007
HEADLINES OF THE DAY
Chile Presents Bid for 2011 Copa America
Chile has submitted a bid for soccer’s Copa America, the South American national teams competition, in 2011. Michelle Bachelet, the president of Chile, met Nicolas Leoz, the president of Conmebol, South American soccer’s governing body, yesterday to present the candidature. Leoz said the interest of Chile’s head of state in the competition was a positive sign for sport in the country. Hugo Chavez Frias, the president of Venezuela, made a similar approach to Conmebol in 2004 and it was subsequently awarded this year's event.
Chile is the only country to have made a concrete bid for the 2011 competition. This year’s event will take place from June 26 to July 15. OleOle.com, the online event packages and hospitality services firm, has agreed a deal to become the official hospitality partner for the 2007 Copa America. The company will offer exclusive hospitality packages to businesses and individuals. The packages include pre-match entertainment, catering and match tickets. Source: Sportcal, 23rd May 2007
Devils Hope Problems Will be Solved Soon
Manchester United hopes that the issues surrounding their trip to Malaysia will be resolved by the relevant parties. The club said in a statement posted on their website that they held a series of meetings in Kuala Lumpur yesterday with the Youth and Sports Ministry, the FA of Malaysia (FAM) and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) concerning the match, scheduled to be played in Kuala Lumpur on July 27.
“This match is a key element of Malaysia’s celebrations of its 50 years of independence and presents a marvellous opportunity for us to play in front of our many Malaysian fans,” the club said. “Unfortunately new information has come to the club’s attention today concerning the FAM’s agreement with the AFC to act as host for the Asian Cup, which means the club cannot play the game without the official approval of the AFC. “The club hopes the issues can be resolved to ensure that this celebration match can take place as planned.” Source: The Star, 23rd May 2007
Related Excerpts: Manchester United’s Tour of Malaysia
Source: Manchester United Official, 23rd May 2007
Manchester United has had a series of meetings today with the Malaysian Youth and Sports Ministry, The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) concerning the planned match in Kuala Lumpur on 27 July 2007. This match is a key element of the Malaysian Government’s celebrations of its 50 years of independence and presents a marvellous opportunity for us to play in front of our many Malaysian fans. Unfortunately new information has come to the Club’s attention today concerning the FAM’s agreement with the AFC to act as host for the Asian Cup, which means the Club cannot play the game without the official approval of the AFC. The Club hopes that the issues can be resolved by the relevant parties to ensure that this celebration match can take place as planned. A further announcement will be made in due course.
Source: The New Straits Times, 23rd May 2007
Football Association of Malaysia deputy president Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad, met Manchester United chief executive David Gill and English Premier League chairman Dave Richards separately, said he was sad the match won’t be held. "We tried to reach an amicable solution. In fact, I requested that United come two days later but they said it’s not possible. "There is nothing much we can do at this point in time," he said. Asian Football Confederation president Mohamed Hammam also met Gill and Richards at AFC House in Bukit Jalil yesterday. It is learnt that he had put all the cards on the table, including the contract provisions FA of Malaysia had signed to host the Asian Cup.
Source: Bernama Newswire, 23rd May 2007
Malaysian Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said has asked for the AFC to give Malaysia a special exemption to allow the EPL champions, Manchester United, to play the friendly as scheduled on July 27.
Source: Fox Sport Australia, 23rd May 2007
Asia's football chief Mohamed Bin Hammam has asked Manchester United officials to reschedule the club's July 27 match against a Malaysia XI to avoid a clash with the Asian Cup. Hammam met United chief executive David Gill and English Premier League chairman David Richards in the Malaysian capital overnight in a bid to resolve a tense situation which could result in legal action being taken against the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM).
Source: Shanghai Daily, 24th May 2007
Manchester United and Asian soccer's governing body failed to reach an immediate agreement to end the standoff over the English champion's proposed Asian tour, despite a lengthy meeting between the two in Kuala Lumpur yesterday. The Malaysian government, meanwhile, insisted it wants United to play as planned on July 27 in Kuala Lumpur. The Asian Football Confederation has urged the newly crowned Premier League champion to postpone its four-country Asian tour over fears it will detract from the finals of the July 7-29 AFC Asian Cup.
Source: Channel News Asia, 24th May 2007
Malaysia is pushing ahead with hosting a friendly match with Manchester United in July, despite strong opposition from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The government made this decision after no compromise was reached in a meeting of the affected parties in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday. The President of the Asian Football Confederation refused to budge, despite a personal visit by the Manchester United chief executive and the FA Premier League chairman. With no compromise in sight, the Malaysian cabinet gave its support to the Football Association of Malaysia.
SPORTS SHORTS
* Taiwan's National Communications Commission announced that it will amend fixed-network telecommunication regulations to include operation of multimedia platforms, allowing existing cable TV operators to operate IPTV and local voice communications through their cable TV networks. The amendment will allow qualified cable TV operators to run independent multimedia platforms to provide data services and allow programme channels to deliver contents. Basic requirement is a minimum of 400,000 subscribers. Source: Advanced Television, 23rd May 2007
* Shanghai Media Group is expected to launch broadcast of the country's first Mobile TV service. The company is preparing for China's eventual rollout of 3G wireless services - expected ahead of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Dragon New Media, a unit of SMG, has formed partnerships with China Mobile Group and China Unicom Group to focus on mobile TV services. SMG and larger rival China Central Television (CCTV) have both won nationwide mobile TV permits. Source: Advanced Television, 23rd May 2007
* Roger Federer, world number one male tennis player, is to take on retired star Pete Sampras in three exhibition matches in Asia later this year. Federer will meet the American, a 14-time grand slam winner, in the Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on November 22 and in Macau on November 24. The location for their first contest on November 20 is yet to be determined. The tour is being organised by IMG Tennis Asia, a division of international sports agency IMG. Source: Sportcal, All Headline News, ESPN, Aljazeera English, The Star Malaysia, 23rd May 2007
* Following Fox Sports’ report yesterday that the billion dollar television deal between ESPN Star Sports and International Cricket Council is in danger of collapsing, the cricket market today went into a tizzy. When contacted by Indiantelevision.com, ESS executives said the delay was on account of technical issues which are being sorted out and all financial arrangements are in place. Was ESS renegotiating the deal? The official answer is no, says an ESS spokesman. Source: Indian Television, 23rd May 2007
* Queensbury Media has been appointed to market international television rights to the 2007 World Weightlifting Championships in Thailand. RS International Broadcasting and Sports Management will be the host broadcaster for the event, which takes place in Chiang Mai from September 16 to 26, and a first-ever high definition production is promised. Queensbury Media produced the 2006 world weightlifting championships for Eurosport and NTV Russia, and has also been involved in European and world boxing championships. Source: Sportcal, 23rd May 2007
* Infront Sports and Media has reportedly agreed to pay between €12 million ($16.2 million) and €15 million per year to the German Skiing Association to distribute media rights to FIS World Cup events held in the country. The four-year deal will see Swiss-based Infront market the rights to events in alpine, Nordic and freestyle skiing and snowboarding until then end of the 2010-11 season. The rights were previously owned by Media Partners, the Italian sports agency acquired by Infront last October in a deal worth around €130 million. Source: Sportcal, 23rd May 2007
* Media Partners has now officially become Infront Italy. The company was rebranded eight months after it was purchased by Infront Sports & Media. MP Web, the new media company of Media Partners Group, will also be relaunched as Infront Advanced Media Solutions. Source: Sports Media, Sport Business, Sports e-Media, 23rd May 2007
* Canadian commercial broadcaster CTV and cable sports channel Rogers Sportsnet have secured rights to the National Football League for the next 3 seasons. CTV has secured the rights to the early-afternoon games, the playoffs and the climatic Super Bowl, while Rogers will show the late-afternoon game. The two are reported to have paid between C$10 million ($9.2 million) and C$15 million per year for rights. Global, which had held rights to Sunday games, playoffs and Super Bowl for decades, is left out of the picture. Source: Sportcal, Worldscreen, Globe & Mail, 23rd May 2007
* Arsenal will become the latest club to launch a television channel. The London-based club aims to introduce the paid-for service on an existing broadcast platform before the end of the year. The station will run for six hours a day, five days a week, and feature archive footage, match action and original material. It will also run the existing Arsenal TV show and the club's website, 60% of subscribers of which are based overseas. Other British clubs with television channels are Manchester United, Chelsea, Celtic and Rangers. Source: Sportcal, 23rd May 2007
* ESPNsoccernet is launching an online video football news service called Soccernet SportsCenter. The website will provide 3-min video new round-ups on a daily basis, covering leading global football news stories. ESPNsoccernet recently offered exclusive video interviews with David Beckham and Jose Mourinho via the website, but the new service will be available to view every morning. The bulletin will be hosted by Georgie Bingham, who previously worked for the BBC, ITV and Sky, and now hosts the ESPN SportCenter Atlantic TV show. Source: Sports Media, 23rd May 2007
* Honda’s F1 team has become the first to offer fans a dedicated WAP site. Throughout the 2007 season on UK’s ITV1, fans will be prompted to access the Honda WAP site by texting a keyword to a short-code. On the WAP site, users can also order brochures, book test drives, locate their nearest Honda dealer in the UK, and more. Content downloads include; ringtones, screen savers and wallpapers, which will be updated regularly to reflect the latest Honda action in the F1 Grand Prix season. Source: Content Futures, 23rd May 2007
* FIBA is threatening to suspend English players from its competitions unless the UK government withdraws plans to take more control of the sport. A FIBA official has branded the plans to set up a new British governing body to replace the British Federation as "abusive". FIBA has taken exception to the level of government interference. The governing body will ban English players from its competitions from June 15, which would prevent Britain's best men and women from playing in the qualifiers for the 2009 European finals. Source: Sport Business, Sportcal, 23rd May 2007
* The Hawk-Eye replay technology will be used at Wimbledon tennis championships on Centre Court and Court No. 1, organizers said after testing the procedure on grass. Using Hawk-Eye for the first time may benefit players on grass because the ball skids and usually doesn't leave marks. The marks are most noticeable on clay, the surface for the French Open and the only major that doesn't use instant replay. At Roland Garros in Paris, a referee can be asked after each point to physically check where the ball bounced. Source: Bloomberg, 23rd May 2007
MORE NEWS
Mid-East/Rights: Showtime Scores New Rugby Deal
Pay-TV network Showtime Arabia has taken up the “multi-year” rights to the SANZAR rugby union package which includes the Tri Nations, The Currie Cup, The Air New Zealand Cup, the 2009 British and Irish Lions Tour of South Africa, the Tri Nations tournament and the home international matches of leading rugby nations Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
The agreement also secures coverage of the Super 14 competition on Showtime Arabia. This year’s edition of the popular provincial rugby competition featuring teams from Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand was won by the Bulls after the team beat the Sharks 20-19 in the final on Saturday. The broadcaster also covers the RBS (sponsor) 6 Nations, all home internationals of England, Ireland, Wales and Scotland, the Guinness Premiership, The Magners League and the IRB Sevens circuit.
Later this year Showtime Arabia will air coverage of the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France, and the network recently acquired rights to English Premier League football for the next three seasons. “Showtime is the home of rugby and adding these broadcast rights to our already strong and exclusive rugby offering provides our customers with the best rugby from both hemispheres all year round,” said Andy Warkman, head of sports at Showtime. Source: Sports Media, 23rd May 2007
Malaysia/General: Finances Key to Night Grand Prix in Malaysia
Cost will be a determining factor on whether F1’s Malaysian Grand Prix becomes a night race after 2010, according to the country’s minister for youth and sport. Azalina Othman Said said: ‘Staging an F1 race is an expensive affair for the government… we have to see how well we can benefit from the event and what kind of development it can bring to motor sport in the country. Ultimately our dream is to see more Malaysian F1 drivers in Formula 1 racing.’
Singapore is due to stage the first night grand prix in 2008 and countries in Asia are being encouraged to follow suit so that their races can be held at a convenient time for European television audiences. Mokhzani Mahatir, the chairman of Sepang International Circuit, the venue for the Malaysian race, said efforts were being made to ascertain the viability of a night race.
He told the Bernama news agency: ‘We are actually studying what kind of light would be suitable, the security aspects, which will certainly be our top priority, and a few other things before anything can be firmed up.’ Formula 1 promoter Bernie Ecclestone indicated this week that the Australian Grand Prix, held at Albert Park in Melbourne, could disappear from the calendar in the future if the race cannot be held at night. Source: Sportcal, 23rd May 2007
Elsewhere/Business: Champions League Triumph is Worth £67 Million
Liverpool and AC Milan will battled it out for a windfall of up to £67 million at the 2007 UEFA Champions League final in Athens, according to research commissioned by MasterCard. KRC Research assembled 12 of leading football and business experts, from England, Germany, France, Italy, Spain and Croatia, on behalf of MasterCard. The experts found that a winning club is likely to enjoy increased sponsorship, TV revenue, gate receipts and player value - although the estimated reward of up to £67 million is less than many top clubs have spent on transfers and wages in the past few seasons.
The findings also suggest good news for the victorious club's home city. When Liverpool won the 2005 final, the city of Liverpool benefited from an estimated £47 million cash injection over the following year, through increased consumer spending, tourism, sponsorship and commerce. FC Porto also enjoyed a financial boost after its 2004 win, with the Portuguese city estimated to have raked in up to £8 million. The research also found that the home cities of UEFA Champions League-winning clubs profit more from the success of their local team if they are small or relatively unknown. Larger cities such as Milan, Barcelona or London, are said to benefit least from a local club lifting the title.
The Champions League and the European Championship have both seen rapid growth in popularity since MasterCard began its association with UEFA in 1992. They are now ranked among the biggest sporting competitions in the world, with nearly 50% of the audience for the Champions League’s 2004-05 season coming from outside Europe. Source: Football Insider, Sport Business, 23rd May 2007
Wednesday, 23rd May 2007
HEADLINE OF THE DAY
English FA Prepares to Launch International Rights Tender
The Football Association, English soccer’s governing body, is launching the tender process for the international rights to the FA Cup, the country’s top knockout competition, and England’s home matches. The FA is seeking interest now from broadcasters, agencies and specialist media operations, including mobile phone and IPTV networks, before tender documents are issued in June.
The rights cover a four-year period, beginning with the 2008-09 season, and include the FA Cup, 28 England matches, approximately 20 England Under-21 matches, and the FA Community Shield, the traditional ‘curtain-raiser’ to the English season. A domestic deal worth £425 million ($837 million) has already been agreed with commercial broadcaster ITV and pay-television operator Setanta. Saturday’s FA Cup final was televised in more than 160 territories and had a global audience of more than £500 million. Source: Sportcal, 22nd May 2007
WHAT’S THE BUZZ?
Life's a Beach for Longoria and Soap Hunk
Eva Longoria had some fun in the sun spending a day at the beach with soap hunk Adrian Bellani. Fortunately, Longoria's pro basketball player fiancé Tony Parker—who was busy playing in the NBA Western Conference finals—has nothing to worry about. Longoria and Bellani co-hosted the AVP Toyota Open volleyball tournament in Hermosa Beach, California, yesterday to support Padres Contra El Cáncer, an organization for Latino children with cancer.
Longoria has been the face of the charity for two years now, and she definitely raised awareness yesterday when she played in the tournament in a skimpy white bikini. Bellani was quite impressed with Longoria. Her playing skills, that is. Source: Female First UK, 22nd May 2007
SPORTS SHORTS
* Four-time MLS champion D.C. United will play in the Copa Sudamericana, a prestigious South American club tournament this fall. United was invited to the event after a third-place finish in the CONCACAF Champions' Cup this year. D.C. United was the first team from Major League Soccer to participate in the tournament when it was invited to play in the 2005 edition. United won the MLS Cup in 1996, '97, '99 and 2004. Source: WTOP News, 21st May 2007
* Saralee Thungthong-kam and Sudket Prapakamol made Thai badminton history last Thursday when they became the Kingdom's first mixed doubles pair to top the Badminton World Federation's rankings. Sudket and Saralee were previously ranked 2nd, took top spot after top pair, Nova Widianto and Lylyana Natsir of Indonesia, suffered an early exit at the Indonesia Open Super Series. The Thai duo reached the second round. In the men's singles, Boonsak Ponsana, who recently captured the Singapore Open Super Series title, is ranked eighth. Source: The Nation, 22nd May 2007
* Malaysian national doubles coach, Rexy Mainaky, wants his charges who have qualified for the World Championships to break into the top four in order to avoid meeting each other in the preliminary rounds of the Aug 13-19 tournament. Rexy is mindful of the last few tournaments where Malaysia’s men’s doubles have played as early as the first round, said they must aim to be ranked in the top four if they wish to do well in the World Championships in Kuala Lumpur. Source: The New Straits Times, 23rd May 2007
* The BCCI has blamed Doordarshan for the failure to provide coverage of the ongoing test series in Bangladesh. Coverage of the series is limited to Neo Sports, the pay channel of Nimbus Communications, but the BCCI said it was not obliged to intervene. It pointed out that DD had been showing the one-day series between Pakistan and Sri Lanka and could not understand why the Bangladesh-India series was not also available. The first of the two test matches in Chittagong has been affected by rain and finished in a draw today. Source: Sportcal, Television Point, 22nd May 2007
* Showtime Arabia’s support for its Arabic and English coverage of English Premier League football will involve two studios and supporting control rooms, currently being built for the project, with a host of pundits and presenters being lined up to provide previews, reviews, live reporting and analysis on the pay-TV network in the Middle-East and North Africa. Showtime Arabia will cover the Premier League for the next three years. Ali Alawieh will be the main presenter in Showtime's Arabic commentary studio. Source: Sports Media, 22nd May 2007
* Two top English football powerbrokers arrive in Malaysia this week to resolve a row over Manchester United's planned Asian tour. Premier League chairman Sir Dave Richards and Manchester United chief executive David Gill will meet AFC president Mohamed bin Hammam on Wednesday, AFC officials said. bin Hammam reiterated on Tuesday his position that United, or any other club, cannot play in countries hosting Asian Cup matches while the tournament is on. Source: Channel News Asia, 23rd May 2007
* A pilot project in India for providing television on mobile phones is being launched by Doordarshan, although trial runs have been on-going since February. The service will initially be free to air and the channels available on the Digital Video Broadcasting Handheld mode will be: DD 1, DD News, DD Bharati, DD Sports, DD Urdu, DD Bangla and DD Podhigai. Source: Indian Television, 23rd May 2007
* Pakistan’s Super Hockey League has been dropped by its federation after three years due to a lack of adequate venues and sponsor interest. The initiative was launched in 2005 and league officials are still hopeful they can revive the competition next year. PHF secretary Khalid Mehmood said that this year’s tournament could not go ahead because installation of floodlights at the national stadium in Lahore has been delayed. The Super Hockey League was launched intending to make hockey more lucrative for players and attractive to spectators. Source: Sportcal, 22nd May 2007
* Siam Sport is attempting to stabilise finances of the daily sports newspaper, which has struggled with a drop in advertising revenues and forced to look closely at its own editorial content. Ad-spend in the papers in the first four months of 2007 dropped by 7.8%, according to Nielsen. The paper recently reduced the number of pages to 32 and reduced copies printed during the week whilst increasing the number for the weekend to cut overall production costs. Last month, Siam Sport launched Thailand’s first 24-hour local sports channel on satellite TV. Source: Sports Media, 22nd May 2007
* MGM Domestic Television Distribution secured a fall syndication launch for its half-hour comedy series Sports Action Team. Last season SAT aired on NBC. The second season will premiere on HDNet this fall and will also be available for syndication. Created by Towers Productions, the 17 x 30-min SAT is a semi-scripted series that follows antics of a hapless sports reporters who cover the national sports beat. Each week, the team interacts with athletes, managers, sports enthusiasts and celebrities including Conan O’Brien, Don King and more. Source: Worldscreen, 22nd May 2007
* EM.TV is repositioning itself to focus on sports business and is looking for a buyer for its children’s and youth content divisions. No timetable has been given for the sale. The announcement came as EM.TV released Q1 2007 results. The sports segment —DSF, PLAZAMEDIA-Group and Sport 1 —delivered an 18.7% revenue increase to €54.7 million, with profit of €7.3 million. Without the entertainment segments, EM.TV is targeting 2007 revenues of €215 million; with the children and youth divisions included, the target was €250 million. Source: Worldscreen, Bloomberg, Hollywood Reporter, 22nd May 2007
* Chinese fans have been brought closer to European football with UEFA's launch of a Mandarin-language version of uefa.com. The website is produced by UEFA Media Technologies with major Chinese portal, sina.com. In addressing growing demand and popularity of football in Asia, the move makes uefa.com the football website with the widest reach. This comes after the UEFA Champions League boasted its first Chinese player with international defender Sun Xiang representing PSV Eindhoven. The site can be accessed at http://cn.uefa.com. Source: UEFA Official, China Daily, 22nd May 2007
* Mobile TV provider, Yamgo, announced a global cross-platform mobile video sharing service and the world's first free-to-view mobile TV network. The service enables Yamgo customers to create mobile video pages to upload and share videos from their mobile handsets or via www.yamgo.tv; apart from to ad-funded channels and user-generated content, Yamgo will make available premium video including live broadcasts, mobisodes and downloads distributed on time-based subscriptions, pay-per-view, or pay-per-download basis. Yamgo is currently trialing the service in 25 countries. Source: Fierce Mobile Content, 22nd May 2007
* Sussex County Cricket Club announced that its video site, Sussex TV, will be available for free in 2007. Registering at www.succexcricket.co.uk will give access to exclusive dressing room footage and an archive of memorable cricket moments. “It has been a real pleasure to see many visitors from countries like Thailand, the USA, Australia, Pakistan and Bangladesh. With Sussex TV free we hope to make our club even more accessible to both fans of Sussex and cricket fans in general,” said the club in a press release. Source: Sports Media, 22nd May 2007
MORE NEWS
India/Broadcaster: Ten Sports Exploring New Revenue Options
Taj Television-owned Ten Sports channel is exploring alternative revenue options from platforms such as mobile telephony and gaming. While the bulk of its revenues would continue to come from ad and distribution, the sports channel is planning to expand its sources of revenue. Newly appointed General Manager of the channel, Mr Rukin Kizilblash, said, "We are looking at different options to generate revenues and are open to all sorts of ideas. Bagging mobile rights and gaming could be some of the other sources of generating revenues for the channel.''
Kizilbash says, "We still have more than 50 per cent share among sports channels and the purpose is to hold on to it.'' The channel is also putting up a new show - `Sports Night' to showcase sporting events around the world and half hour capsule. Trying to lure audiences away from cricket, Ten Sports expects to drive audiences to sports such as wrestling and tennis. Mr Kizilbash says, "We will continue to delight the channel's millions of viewers with sporting events like the WWP championships and the US Open tennis matches.''
Early this year, the Essel Group's Zee TV picked up a 50 per cent stake in the channel. "Zee has picked up a 50 per cent stake and would be increasing it over the next two years. However, the management of the two companies is still unchanged. We are figuring out how we will differentiate the content between the two channels, '' says Mr Kizilbash. Ten Sports currently owns the exclusive rights for the WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment), the UEFA Champions League, the US Open tennis and Hockey's World Cup. Source: Business Line India, 23rd May 2007
Australia/Rights: Fox Sports Unveils Asian Cup Scheduling
Fox Sports Australia has announced it will broadcast every football match at the Asian Cup in July. FS will cover 24 matches in the group stages, the four quarter-finals, the two semi-finals, the third/fourth place play-off and the final. FS will cover a total of 28 matches, with the other four on immediate replay due to conflicting kick off times on the last two days of the group stage. Every match involving Australia will be carried live. Most of the matches will take place at prime time in Australia.
Fox Sports will supply English commentary to an expected worldwide audience of 200 million people, through ESPN Star Asia, Eurosport and LBC. Andy Harper will host pre-match and post-match analysis from a studio in Sydney, which will move to Kuala Lumpur towards the end of the tournament. The competition will kick-off on July 7 and conclude on July 29 with Australia’s playing its opening match against Oman on July 8. Source: Sports Media, 22nd May 2007
Global/Rights: ICC to Lose as TV Deal Fades
The International Cricket Council's billion dollar TV deal with ESPN Star Sports is in danger of collapsing. Industry experts claim that ESS has yet to sign a contract with the ICC, believing it to be unsustainable following regulatory changes in India. This would be a blow for the game's governing body and its 10 Test-playing countries which would expect tens of millions of dollars over the life of the agreement. The crisis again highlights the economic hold India has over cricket globally.
The ICC announced in December that it had sold rights to 18 events over the next eight years, beginning with the Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa in September, to ESS for an undisclosed sum believed to be $US1.1billion ($1.4bn). It also includes the 2011 and 2015 World Cups and at least three Champions Trophies. ESS planned to show the events in Asia and on-sell them to broadcasters in other parts of the world.
However, Harish Thawani, head of rival company, Nimbus Communications, which paid an amazing $US612 million for the rights to cricket in India, said there had been dramatic changes in India, where broadcast rights were now worth substantially less. India generates most of the game's wealth through television rights and sponsorship.
India's early exit from the recent World Cup cost broadcasters millions and raised concerns it could happen again at future big events costing even more. ESS paid twice as much as the previous seven-year ICC deal for the rights. The value of rights has also been diminished by government insistence that cricket must also be shown by state broadcaster Doordarshan - greatly expanding the audience but robbing cashed up cable operators of exclusivity.
However, Thawani claimed the biggest restriction had been the Government's popularist capping of the sale of subscription television channels to just US12 cents, of which the broadcaster gets just US5c. Because of the regulatory changes in India, Thawani's Nimbus is in the process of negotiating compensation from the Board of Control for Cricket in India which will run to many millions of dollars
ESS is jointly owned by News Corporation and Walt Disney Co. An ESPN Star Sports spokesman in Singapore played down any concerns. "We're not renegotiating with the ICC. We're pretty happy," the spokesman said. The ICC has also denied any approach by ESPN Star Sports to re-negotiate their existing agreement. Source: Fox Sport Australia, 23rd May 2007