It’s one of the “big ticket” items in global media and one that
causes more debate – and sometimes angst – than just about any
other area of the media. Sports rights are constantly in the news
as the price of delivering key events to viewers increases year by
year. The AIB’s Simon Spanswick has been studying the form in
sports broadcasting
SPORTS, RIGHTS,
SPONSORS,FANS
40
|
ISSUE 2 2015
|
THE CHANNEL
port touches a
majority of people
on the planet,
whether they are
participants or
spectators. From
golf to Formula 1,
cricket to football, sport is an
immense global industry. According
to PwC, sport will be worth around
US$150billion this year, up from
US$120billion in 2010. While
merchandising, product
endorsement and hospitality are
big income generators, it is the sale
of broadcasting rights for major
events and sports leagues that
delivers the greatest revenues to
rights holders.
Dizzying sums of money are
now being spent by broadcasters –
in particular pay-TV operators – to
secure rights of key events. The
broadcasters’ aim is to maintain –
and increase – audience numbers.
It’s a model that’s worked highly
successfully in Europe, where Sky -
in the UK, Germany and Italy - has
gained exclusive rights to key
events, particularly football (soccer)
and as a result has secured new
subscribers keen to watch content
that’s no longer available on free-to-
air networks.
In Germany, public and free-to-
air commercial channels have been
left with what some might consider
the dregs in football TV rights -
highlight and round-up programmes
for the Bundesliga, rather than live
coverage of matches. In the UK, the
BBC shares F1 with Sky, showing
ten of the 19 races live with
highlights for the rest.
Meanwhile, sports leagues rub
their hands in glee as more money
than ever before is put on the table
by broadcasters. In theory, the extra
S
TV (and increasingly now digital)
rights revenues should help sport’s
development, making cash
available to refurbish existing, or
build new sports arenas and stadia,
alongside the funding of grassroots
initiatives to bring the youth into
sport and develop their skills.
NEWPLAYERS
New entrants in the European pay-
TV market, like BT Sport in the UK
and beIN SPORTS in France, have
shaken up the market. Over the
past three or four years, these
newcomers have taken the fight to
established pay-TV operators Sky
and Canal+ (owned by Vivendi),
out-bidding them for rights for key
football (soccer) competitions.
Since its launch in France in
2011, beIN SPORTS has moved
from football into other sports,
including Wimbledon (lawn
Pay-TV
platforms
are
spending
dizzying
sums on
rights
“
”
