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In the wake of Dave Smith’s departure, Channel Nine and Fox Sports have come to terms regarding the former’s Saturday night NRL fixtures, a crucial slot for Fox.
Plans were put in place by the NRL in August for Nine to receive four live matches per week, splitting the game share down the middle with a Pay TV partner, as opposed to Fox’s previous five-to-three advantage.
First and foremost the newest move will see Fox retain the Saturday night fixture and resultantly the entirety of Saturday matches, making for a happy News Corp chief, Rupert Murdoch.
Maintaining the five-three game status quo over Nine is obviously good news for Foxtel’s sports-subscription base.
However the new deal is somewhat peculiar for Murdoch given when trumpeting the six-year, $2.508 billion broadcast rights deal for the AFL, he stated, “We’ve always believed that this is the premium code in Australia – it’s the national game.”
Despite whatever personal preference Murdoch holds, the reported $35 million a year Fox has paid to reclaim the Saturday night fixture from Channel Nine shows he still respects the importance of the NRL and its fan-base.
Secondly, this announcement will affect fans of the NRL. When the initial $925 million Nine deal was announced, all four games were to be aired live – including primetime Thursday, Friday and Saturday slots, and the traditional Sunday afternoon fixture.
So are fans now losing out with the removal of a fourth free-to-air game? Yes and no.
There will still be three live free-to-air matches per week from 2016, an improvement on the previous two offered by Nine until the 2015 season adjustment.
The new structure of the NRL competition – 25 weeks as opposed to 26, with only one ‘half round’ – remains, which is also a win for fans as the quality remains high. Furthermore, the much bemoaned Monday-night game will be scrapped in 2017.
In terms of Fox maintaining their share of fixtures, it is a double-edged sword.
2015 saw widespread derision from fans and media outlets over Nine’s coverage. Issues ranged from poor match-day presentation, questionable commentator selection and of course quality issues over the besieged Footy Show, which would most likely have been discontinued or rebranded if someone other than Nine had acquired the free-to-air rights.
So yes, it means fewer free-to-air matches for fans, but with digital outlets still on offer, such as Telstra’s terrific and cheap smartphone live streaming of matches, fans can still access games and will be offered high-quality coverage.
The simulcasting agreement reached with Fox offers further choice and quality to consumers, albeit at subscription prices. It also gives Murdoch more sway to gain new subscribers, who have iterated their aforementioned concerns regarding Nine’s presentation.
It gets even better for fans, with Fox deciding to replicate their successful AFL formula and introduce a dedicated NRL channel in 2017. The promise of a rugby league hub delivering 24/7 content should be enough to substantially increase subscription numbers, and is a boost for the broadcaster after losing the English Premier League rights.
Perhaps most importantly is what the Foxtel deal means for the strength of the game from a financial and longevity standpoint. In short, things are extremely positive.
As the NRL proudly declared, “The deal is worth $1.8 billion to the NRL – 70 per cent higher than the existing rights.
“With the sale of international and radio rights to come, it is anticipated that the total value of the final package will exceed $1.9 billion.”
Despite Phil Gould tweeting his lack of concern between the NRL and AFL, it is necessary to compare the two deals.
The AFL deal is $2.508 billion over six years, equating to $418 million per year.
At an estimated $1.9 billion over five years, the NRL deal will bring in approximately $380 million per year.
So while the AFL maintain their place at the top of the media-rights tree, it’s not the financial trouncing that many feared in the wake of Murdoch’s August outlay.
There is certainly more work to do to improve the standing of the game, particularly in the game-day experience area, given there were decade-low attendances in 2015. There is also general dissatisfaction from fans regarding ticket and food pricing, and substandard game-day entertainment.
But this landmark deal is certainly one the administration can proudly stand by.
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