No more blanket TV coverage

[tototoner]

Although the last 92 fixtures in the 2019-20 Premier League campaign had to take place behind closed doors, at least all of them will be shown live on television.

However, The Athletic has learned that this was a one-off move in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Premier League will go back to its normal UK broadcast model next season, even though top-flight stadiums are expected to remain at least partially shut in the coming months.

UK broadcast rights are divided between Sky Sports and BT Sport, with Amazon set to show 20 matches during the 2020-21 season. The BBC has shown four matches of the resumed 2019-20 season but will return to showing highlights when the current campaign ends.

The development will deny huge numbers the chance to watch games either inside grounds or in real-time on TV and come as a particular blow to fans who have decided against renewing their season tickets, either because of health concerns or uncertainty over how many matches they can attend.

The decision also raises understandable fears of a rise in the illegal streaming, which, according to one study, cost Premier League clubs around £1 million of revenue per fixture in 2018-19.

 

[tobi]

I'm expecting them to change this decision and revert back to normal when fans are allowed to attend games.

 

[NickHSpurs]

I'd be amazed if Clubs aren't looking at having their own paid live streaming setup for any games behind closed doors that aren't broadcast. I would like to think streams should be free to ST holders and available to buy at a discount for members.

Clubs in the Championship have been offering paid streams during lockdown, if they can do it Prem clubs certainly have the capability.

 

[NickHSpurs]

I'm expecting them to change this decision and revert back to normal when fans are allowed to attend games.

I think Clubs will be more interested in making income themselves and selling live streams with all the Covid-19 related losses considered.

 

[Gb160]

I'd be amazed if Clubs aren't looking at having their own paid live streaming setup for any games behind closed doors that aren't broadcast. I would like to think streams should be free to ST holders and available to buy at a discount for members.

The clubs don't get to decide that though, the PL do.

 

[Gassin's finest]

I'd be amazed if Clubs aren't looking at having their own paid live streaming setup for any games behind closed doors that aren't broadcast. I would like to think streams should be free to ST holders and available to buy at a discount for members.

Clubs in the Championship have been offering paid streams during lockdown, if they can do it Prem clubs certainly have the capability.

Do you mean the iFollow thing, that the EFL run? It's pretty cool, but the PL probably won't go that route just yet, because the PL TV rights package across Sky, BT and now Amazon is still worth so much... not to mention all the overseas deals.

 

[Lilbaz]

I'd be amazed if Clubs aren't looking at having their own paid live streaming setup for any games behind closed doors that aren't broadcast. I would like to think streams should be free to ST holders and available to buy at a discount for members.

Clubs in the Championship have been offering paid streams during lockdown, if they can do it Prem clubs certainly have the capability.

Couple of reasons for this. Firstly bt and sky actually make a loss on tv rights for football. They make it back through their broadband packages. Secondly the pl needs a 2/3 majority vote. The smaller clubs wont vote for it because they know that the big clubs will get the lions share of viewers and subscriptions leaving them worse off. Even if it was split fairly evenly it would only be a matter of time before liverpool and man utd demand more.

 

[tobi]

I think Clubs will be more interested in making income themselves and selling live streams with all the Covid-19 related losses considered.

I'd be interested in that but would rather stick with the experienced broadcasters.

 

[John48]

Up to the Gov to put pressure on the Prem Clubs to carry on until we're back to something like normal.

 

[NickHSpurs]

Couple of reasons for this. Firstly bt and sky actually make a loss on tv rights for football. They make it back through their broadband packages. Secondly the pl needs a 2/3 majority vote. The smaller clubs wont vote for it because they know that the big clubs will get the lions share of viewers and subscriptions leaving them worse off. Even if it was split fairly evenly it would only be a matter of time before liverpool and man utd demand more.

The broadcasted games on BT/Sky/Amazon will still go ahead as usual and that money will be divided as usual though.

If Clubs then stream games that aren't broadcast via their own channels, that's just extra money in their own pockets no?

I don't see why a Club like Watford for example would decide to forfeit that extra revenue just because bigger clubs would get more paid streams than them? If it's that much of an issue just limit it to paid members/ST holders of Clubs.

 

[Lilbaz]

The broadcasted games on BT/Sky/Amazon will still go ahead as usual and that money will be divided as usual though.

If Clubs then stream games that aren't broadcast via their own channels, that's just extra money in their own pockets no?

I don't see why a Club like Watford for example would decide to forfeit that extra revenue just because bigger clubs would get more paid streams than them? If it's that much of an issue just limit it to paid members/ST holders of Clubs.

Sorry my bad didn't read your post properly. Don't know if there are legal/contract issues that might have to be worked out. I know you can't broadcast a game between 15:00 and 17:30 on a saturday. Guess this will be in negotiations unless mass events are allowed in september, although with the report saying how bad the virus could be this winter i doubt it.

 

[JCRD]

I have loved the football being on at 6pm and during the week, maybe says more about my life at the moment... but its clear theyve been able to do this because no fans are allowed so its not an inconvenience.

i do think there should be a streaming service like Netflix. Simon Jordan who loves the sound of his own voice bought this up a few weeks ago on Talksport. PL own the product, they dont need to create a product to sell, so why not just strean it for a tenner a month, im sure that would generate more revenue than Sky and BT Sport etc.

Will be interesting to see going forward

 

[marion52]

I'd be amazed if Clubs aren't looking at having their own paid live streaming setup for any games behind closed doors that aren't broadcast. I would like to think streams should be free to ST holders and available to buy at a discount for members.

Clubs in the Championship have been offering paid streams during lockdown, if they can do it Prem clubs certainly have the capability.

not sure why it should be free to ST holders who won’t be paying for BCD matches?
Maybe a nominal charge?

 

[NickHSpurs]

not sure why it should be free to ST holders who won’t be paying for BCD matches?
Maybe a nominal charge?

We’ve already paid 20% of our ticket for next season

 

[WinksyBoy]

not sure why it should be free to ST holders who won’t be paying for BCD matches?
Maybe a nominal charge?

We have paid to be at games we can't be at?

 

[NickHSpurs]

The cancellation of test events for sport is going to be a massive set back to getting any people back in stadiums in 2020.

Spurs sent around a survey about launching their own video/streaming subscription service, how much we'd be willing to pay and what content would be on there etc. Initially would be womens games, youth games and friendlies but surely this is being discussed as a backup plan to not having fans in stadiums.

 

[RichieS]

I'm not renewing my ST so have been trying to work out how I can watch as many games as possible on TV in the future. I'm leaning towards NowTV, assuming I can pick up the necessary Sky, BT and now Amazon bits (FFS - competition is supposed to improve things for the consumer! Yeah, right). Anyone know if this is viable?

 

[Marty]

I'm not renewing my ST so have been trying to work out how I can watch as many games as possible on TV in the future. I'm leaning towards NowTV, assuming I can pick up the necessary Sky, BT and now Amazon bits (FFS - competition is supposed to improve things for the consumer! Yeah, right). Anyone know if this is viable?

This is the great fallacy of TV rights, it's the one industry where competition is bad for the consumer.

 

[Tucker]

This is the great fallacy of TV rights, it's the one industry where competition is bad for the consumer.

There isn’t really competition though, there’s three different monopolies. If Sky, Amazon, and BT were all selling the same package of games, the consumer could choose which channel to pay for. As it is, if you want to see all the games, you have to pay for all three. There’s no incentive for Sky, or BT to improve their coverage, or to offer competitive pricing because they know chumps like us will still sign up to both of them.

 

[Marty]

There isn’t really competition though, there’s three different monopolies. If Sky, Amazon, and BT were all selling the same package of games, the consumer could choose which channel to pay for. As it is, if you want to see all the games, you have to pay for all three. There’s no incentive for Sky, or BT to improve their coverage, or to offer competitive pricing because they know chumps like us will still sign up to both of them.

True. There's only real competition in the bidding process, not in what is offered to the consumer.