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They say in the advertising world that content is king.
Today Seven West Media (SWM) with Racing Victoria (RV) will soft launch Channel 78, with exclusive Victorian racing content. And it’s not only for the Australian domestic market, but also what I think is more important – to be set-up and resourced to sell and distribute Victorian racing globally.
Already RV have a deal with New Zealand racing and have done deals with Sportsbet and Crownbet to distribute vision.
They’ve also gained some great advertising exposure as Sportsbet and Crownbet have creatively put this as the focus of advertising campaigns.
So now they can do the same deal with Ladbrokes, William Hill, and Bet365 – and any other corporate. They can also sell internationally to France Gallop, Hong Kong Jockey Club, Japan Racing Association, or anywhere that is looking for content to wager on.
That was the key warfront that RV was wagering with Tabcorp.
Sky Racing’s offer on behalf of Tabcorp included separate deals for domestic, international, and digital rights, in a bundle they wouldn’t split. They also linked the media rights to the wagering joint venture it has with RV until 2024.
Although not certain or completely obvious it does bring some speculation that RV with Seven West Media could bid for the exclusive retail wagering license in 2024.
That has me thinking: if you own a tote – does it not make sense to own a TV channel to ensure the maximum viewing audience?
Or would digital rights be worth more, eventually? Imagine Sky Racing with a Netflix channel, a live streaming channel on Youtube, a streaming page on Facebook, an app on Apple TV and others, integration with Smart TVs, and much more. It’s all about reach.
I was reading on twitter some aggrieved punters in Perth whom can not get free race replay and trials, that we all now take for granted in NSW and Victoria. The problem is between the state-owned RWWA and Sky Racing.
Western Australia are in discussions to privatise the WA tote – but why not instead go and buy a TV station?
Foxtel just purchased a 15% stake in Network Ten, owners of Channel Ten, Eleven and One. Network 10, a listed entity on the ASX, has a market cap of $570 million as of today.
Seven West Media has a market cap of $1.6 billion, by comparison.
But maybe a $600 million dollar free-to-air acquisition would be no big deal for a company like Tabcorp or Tatts, which weigh in at $3.91 billion and $5.6 billion dollar heavyweights.
But the reality is they don’t need to completely own a station just to exert some influence. Sky Racing could find a way onto free-to-air with investment – the media rights of Tabcorp are a significant piece of the company’s revenue – but would that be worth pursuing?
The success of NRL, AFL and more recently Cricket Australia financially has all come about re media rights.
Racing now get the chance to showcase its value in the live sports/wagering market – although with one hand tied behind its back because of the state vs state deals.
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