Negotiations on the next Premiership television package are due to start in the first three months of 2009 and already potential bidders are lining up. The last three year deal covering the seasons to 2009-10 raised £1.7bn, 66 per cent more than in 2003. Packages are now sold separately to prevent any one company having a monopoly position and the last deal saw a 2:1 split of live matches between BSkyB and Setanta Sports.
Negotiations on the next Premiership television package are due to start in the first three months of 2009 and already potential bidders are lining up. The last three year deal covering the seasons to 2009-10 raised £1.7bn, 66 per cent more than in 2003. Packages are now sold separately to prevent any one company having a monopoly position and the last deal saw a 2:1 split of live matches between BSkyB and Setanta Sports. There had been speculation that the economic downturn would reduce the amount paid, but the influx of foreign owners is likely to increase the price obtained, especially for foreign rights.
Entertainment multinational The Walt Disney Company is expected to mount a bid through its ESPN sports broadcasting subsidiary. ESPN is also interested in taking control of the US rights from Fox, the broadcaster owned by News Corporation. BT, which launched a live television service last year, is also considering making a bid. At present BT offers customers 46 live Premiership games a season through a deal with Setanta. Some analysts think that the best way forward for BT would be a joint venture with Setanta or even the purchase of the Irish company. BT Vision does not have a distribution platform, given that broadband is not suitable for widescale broadcast of live sport. Setanta has channels on cable and satellite platforms.
One complication is that Ofcom, the media and telecoms regulator, has launched an investigation into the pay TV market last year following a complaint by BT, Virgin Media and Setanta that claimed consumers were charged too much because of Sky’s continuing dominance. The outcome of these regulatory disputes is always difficult to forecast, but many analysts think that Sky could be obliged to act as a wholesaler, making its content available to BT and others at a regulated price. This complicates the bidding process, but Sky will want to retain its leading role in Premiership coverage which is key to its success as a broadcaster.