Back to 1973 with Stephen Conroy’s sports rights TV policy
Back in 1973, the BBC aired an episode of Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads.
A comedy classic that still sometimes gets played in the UK before a big match, it featured the desperate attempts of the two heroes to avoid hearing the result of the the game before they can watch it on TV that night.
Thanks to Stephen Conroy, we’re going to be able to indulge in some nostalgia and reenact it 37 years later.
Well said, Tim.
Anti-siphoning is an anarchronism based on the idea that people have some inate right to watch a sporting event without having to subscribe the pay television.
It will be both live and free with the advent of IPTV.
Free TV and their so called coverage of sport in general is joke to anyone especially those of us that have lived overseas.. Talking of which what the hell are Nine up to cutting their god awful news coverage at 6pm instead of the cricket? I had to dust off the radio.. so yeah it felt like the 70’s
Hi H&R – how will sports be free and live with IPTV? The sports will still sell the rights, and broadcast companies will still want to make money from having purchased those rights. IPTV won’t change that.
Anti-siphoning is a funny way of saying anti-competitive; the poor old free to air networks need so much Government protection, it seems, they aren’t allowed to play in the same sandpit as the pay tv networks. And that’s after a huge gift in rebating their licences ($250 million is not the full cost of course).
As for public benefit, I’ve never benefited from Nine’s lousy tennis coverage. They all (FTAs) want the rights, they want to broadcast it when and how they like – and to fit into their general schedule. And pay tv to be frozen out. ACCC where are you?
Where’s the equity in the balance between those who buy a TV subscription and those who don’t? The market has been shafted by the legislation, defended by Conroy. Con’s right.