Conroy finally announces changes to siphoning list – no obligation to show most sport live
TV broadcasters will still be able to show most sporting events on a delay of up to four hours, media minister Stephen Conroy’s review of the anti-siphoning legislation has concluded.
The review will also see the free to air broadcasters allowed to show protected events on their digital channels.
It will only be if no free to air broadcaster wants to show a listed event on its primary or secondary channel that pay TV will be able to step in.
Announcing the changes, Conroy said: “The Gillard Government wants Australian sports fans to see major sporting events for free as they have always done and these reforms will ensure that Australia’s anti-siphoning scheme remains the strongest in the world.”
Another massive WIN to the free to air broadcasters, no surprises there. Unfortunately the sports viewer loses again with “Tier B events” being broadcast on up to a 4 hour delay?! Hang on, don’t the FTA’s now have 2 mulit-channels each with which to show these events live???
As a consumer, I can’t wait for IPTV streams, legal or not, to bring this whole pro-old media crazy scheme crashing down.
So motorsport fans get screwed again…WTF only Au rounds of F1 and MotoGP guaranteed on FTA
What a joke…
so what were the actual changes? FTA should either show it live or give it up…political donations by the FTA players obviously adds up to a 4 hour window of doom for all sports fans. i love the irony of the FTA campaign…save our sport…you are what is killing sport you FTA monkeys
It’s not ideal but there are some good changes:
– Finally a requirement for the biggest events to be shown live – although the exclusion of State of Origin from that list (Tier A) is weird.
– The outdated requirement for anti-siphoning sports to be shown only on main channels is gone, allowing (though not requiring) networks to show NRL/AFL games live into non-core states on their secondary channels
– Effectively a mandatory minimum standard of coverage for all events on the list – at worst, they have to be shown within four hours of kickoff on any channel, or else offloaded to Fox. Better than the previous situation in which stations would hold up events until well after midnight or just not bother playing them at all.
why is there a 4 hour time period? i listened to conroy give his speech on abc radio and there was no mention of the 4 hours – funny that. There is no qualm with keeping sport on FTA, the qualm is they do not show it live. Take the Friday night AFL coverage in Perth. The FTA coverage begins when the game has been played on the East Coast. How does this benefit the consumer? The Australian Open is another example. FTA take it as part of the listed sporting events but then make us wait up to 4 hours to watch it. It should be show it live…or give it to someone else to show live. FTA can still replay it within the 4 hours. Everybody wins…everybody gets paid.
The principal should have been to promote sport live and in HD, but as normal the vested interests got there before the viewer.
Another opportunity lost by Conroy.
Pathetic.
In Conroy’s Republic of Australia consumer choice is a an anathema. Everyone will have their internet filtered, be forced to use the NBN and will have to put up with the shocking coverage of sport provided by the commercial channels.
So apparently the Australian Open Tennis is not considered a major sporting event by the media minister. It doesn’t have to be shown live by free-to-air networks (read channel 7) and still can be shown delayed (oh but only for 4 hours) except the single’s Finals (yay for that). We’ll just live in a cocoon so we don’t see the score and avoid all social medial shall we.
No improvements made for tennis fans.
Hang on, didn’t Conroy already give the FTA’s a $250m concession on licensing fees back in February?
And now he hands out this diamond-studded cherry on top of that $250m cake? WTF?
Those FTA lobbyists in Canberra are certainly doing a cracking job.
Hey there is a glaring omission from the Football broadcasting. No A-League matches will be protected ?? Ridiculous….why not at least the Grand Final and at one regular competition mach per week. Is that too much to ask ?
Another nail in the coffin of great sport coverage. All very well having the sports on these moronic stations, but if they don’t do the sports justice then they should be excluded from the process.
Yes I would prefer great sporting spectacles to be free on TV, however, if said FTA broadcasters are unable/unwilling or just plain stupid not to deliver the best commentary, on-time coverage and to use, where appropriate, the other 82 channels they have at their disposal.
Case in point:
1. Ryder Cup 2010 – most exciting RHC in god knows how long….final day was moved a day due to weather….ONE/TEN ran exactly same coverage of the “average at best” Comm Games…whilst finally showing the session at midnight when the cup had already been decided.
2. Ashes Test – Nine’s 6pm news bulletin means you lose syd/melb viewers…thanks for making me miss a great couple of final days sessions. I’ll follow it on the foxsports ticker every 15seconds and use my imagination or watch Ant Bully on GO!