General : ESPN, BT, Euro, Premier and Sky Sports news

[muppetman11]

To be honest when you start to break down BT's rights they have a lot of second rate ones , I guess it depends what your interested in for me Sky has EPL (most games and key games) , Key tennis events , Rugby league , La Liga , NFL (games at a time you can watch them) , everything what matters in Golf , Cricket plus much more.

The problem for many is the extortionate price a Sky Sport sub now demands , BT then represents a good lower cost alternative.

[Richc1977]

Originally Posted by muppetman11

To be honest when you start to break down BT's rights they have a lot of second rate ones , I guess it depends what your interested in for me Sky has EPL (most games and key games) , Key tennis events , Rugby league , La Liga , NFL (games at a time you can watch them) , everything what matters in Golf , Cricket plus much more.

The problem for many is the extortionate price a Sky Sport sub now demands , BT then represents a good lower cost alternative.

Plus F1 and championship football & playoffs

Yes very true SKY still have the vast majority of prime picks sport that's not on FTA however I think BT are still the first to seriously challenge and chip away at SKY. Unfortunately I see much of the chipping going forward resulting in FTA content going subscription.

As to prime content to be fair BT do have almost 45% of the first pick PL matches wheras Sentana and ESPN had none. Plus if you follow English rugby BT is the subscription to have with exclusive premiership and first pick of the key European matches.

I'd like to see BT pick up some prime content in other sports, but most are tied up until 2018/19 now. Looking at the rights coming up it's really only tennis where there is decent content up for grabs. Tennis would be a good fit, they already have the WTA tour. Both US Open and Australian Open rights are coming up for tender soon. Plus there is talk of them sharing Wimbledon with BBC.

[lever]

I don't think BT Sport will be around for the long run. I think they only launched it with intention of getting their broadband numbers up due to people opting to take all services with one provider.

I have a theory that BT will end up selling off BT Sports Division to beIN Sports

[denphone]

Sorry but l think BT are in it for the long run.

[OLD BOY]

Originally Posted by denphone

Sorry but l think BT are in it for the long run.

Me, too, Den. I think that BT see themselves as a serious player in the area of TV content and they shouldn't be under-estimated.

They took a risk in setting up their own sports channels, and the coming launch of AMC indicates to me that they are intent on setting up their own TV channel packages as direct competition to Sky. They've got a way to go yet, but they are off to a flying start!

[tassiekev]

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

Me, too, Den. I think that BT see themselves as a serious player in the area of TV content and they shouldn't be under-estimated.

They took a risk in setting up their own sports channels, and the coming launch of AMC indicates to me that they are intent on setting up their own TV channel packages as direct competition to Sky. They've got a way to go yet, but they are off to a flying start!

Couldn't agree more, BT's BB speeds will be up to 500Mbs within 5 years and G.Fast technology will enable most subscribers to achieve at least 50MBs - enough to carry numerous 4k channels (only live channels need higher speeds). Starting from the lowest number of installed TV boxes (about 1M), BT will have lower install costs than VM (4M boxes to replace) and Sky (10M boxes to replace). 4k TV prices will drop like a stone this year and people will want content to suit - I've already seen one 40" 4k TV selling at £239 (Hisense).

[lever]

They may well be in it for the long run, However I feel the inevitable launch of beIN Sports in the UK may swing them into providing entertainment tv along with Sky. Reason I believe this is because beIN have set up a London office with some top rights people.

Besides those Qatari's have some serious money (that can buy hosting the World Cup)

[muppetman11]

It's irrelevant how much money they have it would be madness to launch in such a fiercely competitive market , it's all very well paying the most but when you've had to outbid the likes of Sky and BT your going to have issues making it back.

[1andrew1]

Originally Posted by lever

Reason I believe this is because beIN have set up a London office with some top rights people.

Presumably they're purchasing rights to events in the UK and Europe for their channels. The UK is not an attractive market for sports broadcasters to invest in unless they own a platform, as Setanta and ESPN learnt. So the only way I could see beIN in the UK would be in conjunction with/buying a platform owner.

[lever]

They are on good terms with Sky and BT so will be interesting to see if they strike a deal with either one in the future.

[Richc1977]

Originally Posted by lever

I don't think BT Sport will be around for the long run. I think they only launched it with intention of getting their broadband numbers up due to people opting to take all services with one provider.

I have a theory that BT will end up selling off BT Sports Division to beIN Sports

I don't agree, I think BT are in it for the long run and have the muscle to take on rivals. Their investment in ULTRA HD is a pretty good indicator of intent.

Key for them is getting a look in for some rights, in an interview a few months back Delia Bushell (Managing Director of BT TV and Sport) suggested that some rights holders had rejected offers from BT as they feared another Sentana, ITV digital situation. BeIN would face the same issues in the UK while BT's reputation will no doubt only get better.

However there are a couple of factors that I think could impact the market and potential risk areas.

1. Sports providers deciding to supply content direct rather than via channels as more people move to getting content via netflx, amazon etc.. In the US you can get NFL and MLB etc... via game passes. I'd personally love to see this for cricket and tennis.

2. Sport rights being sold and made available on a pan-European basis, as per Eurosport Olympics.

[1andrew1]

Originally Posted by Richc1977

I don't agree, I think BT are in it for the long run and have the muscle to take on rivals. Their investment in ULTRA HD is a pretty good indicator of intent.

Key for them is getting a look in for some rights, in an interview a few months back Delia Bushell (Managing Director of BT TV and Sport) suggested that some rights holders had rejected offers from BT as they feared another Sentana, IT digital situation. BeIN would face the same issues in the UK while BT's reputation will no doubt only get better.

However there are a couple of factors that I think could impact the market and potential risk areas.

1. Sports providers deciding to supply content direct rather than via channels as more people move to getting content via netflx, amazon etc.. In the US you can get NFL and MLB etc... via game passes. I'd personally love to see this for cricket and tennis.

2. Sport rights being sold and made available on a pan-European basis, as per Eurosport Olympics.

Some interesting points. I think the possibility of dedicated sports channels run by the sports bodies is a real one. Obviously, it depends on whether they will make more money by by selling directly. The growth of non-traditional platforms like Smart TVs and Roku make this easier now than ever.
I think the sale of European rights by the Olympics is pretty much a one-off. Apart from EuroSport, I can't think of any broadcasters in Europe that can bid for events on a pan-European scale. And with a £50m turnover in the UK, it's not viable for EuroSport to bid for big events in this country unless it becomes a premium channel. And a third premium sports channel would really struggle against Sky and BT.
If the European sports market did consolidate across countries, BT has an alliance with DeutscheTelekom (soon to become the largest single BT shareholder) so doubtless there would be joint bids for rights with other DeutscheTelekom affiliates.

[denphone]

BT’s AMC channel arrives on EPGs.

http://www.seenit.co.uk/bts-amc-chan...rives-on-epgs/

[lever]

Originally Posted by 1andrew1

Presumably they're purchasing rights to events in the UK and Europe for their channels. The UK is not an attractive market for sports broadcasters to invest in unless they own a platform, as Setanta and ESPN learnt. So the only way I could see beIN in the UK would be in conjunction with/buying a platform owner.

A few people I have been speaking to who work for tv sports market are also under the impression a beIN launch is sooner rather than later. They have now entered Europe (France, Spain & Turkey) and see the UK as the next market to expand there ever growing network.

A quick look on the internet at the countries they are based in is impressive!

[muppetman11]

I'll believe it when I see it , not a chance in my opinion. The competition between BT and Sky is inflating even lesser sporting rights making it not a good market to move into in my opinion.