The EPL is now invisible thanks to Optus

In the end we won as we got 3 epl channels on fox now plus beIN sport so we get la liga & etc & also we get another 3 epl channels like Tottenham, Arsenal. Even though we don't get it live , we watch it next day in HD. Optus has gone backwards with epl coverage , the quality is a joke. Why would u pay a company that is blatantly ripping u off & has taken the quality back 5years. Thnx optus 4 making foxtel hook us up with all the extra sports channels in hd while ur customers are still streaming non hd epl that cuts out and isnt even live...pathetic

The only people who don't like it are foxtel loonies. You didn't hear the cries of the rest of us who had to pay over 100 a month with no phone or internet to just get the football. It is bettet in every measurable way. Now i can get football, unlimited internet and phone for 120. Befote it was 120 for just foxtel. Thankgod for optus.

Was just talking to an Optus sales rep... i was told I would have to pay out my current contract with Telstra before I can change over to Optus to be illegible to stream games online. Bugger that. I was ALMOST willing to pay for a sim only plan (and then throw the sim in the bin) just to watch the EPL.. What an absolute joke. A simple sport streaming plan is all that would be needed to remedy such a business failing .. I guess Optus hates money, because I honestly believe they could make more of it if they didn't force people to be customers first.... then again their service probably wouldn't cope with the demand.

I had to sign up for an Optus mobile phone to see the EPL and agreed to buy/rent the Fetch set top box which allows the EPL to be streamed in through Wi/Fi and HDMI cable. The live games work well but I find the on demand replays invariably buffer and freeze which is hugely frustrating. The quality of commentary and expert coverage is pretty good but I yearn for the Foxtel cable days and the IQ replay of Southampton games

Yes but it isn't always reliable. Foxtel = reliable and in HD.

Optus may have more customers, but how about someone ask them how many people are actually watching football? My family has 5 Optus accounts and we do not have access to the football as I don't want to pay more for watching games. Gives rights back to Foxtel or allow SBS, ABC etc to show all games. The situation is as ridiculous when you go to book a flight and it's $100 and then they charge you $15 for a seat...

Initially, but not for a long time. Also love the fact they are showing international youth football too - which we have had to rely on sbs for in the past.

Commenting on articles one considers laughable is the business model of this site, no? ?

All i can mention is my experience. I've been a Fox subscriber since World Cup 1998 in France. I'm a fan of many sports such as NRL, the NFL, cricket, tennis and of course football, mainly the EPL. At the time I was stunned when Fox Sports lost the rights. I just didn't understand how it would work, I always thought Fox would get the opportunity to simulcast certain games or something as Fox for so long was the main EPL market space, basically a generation of broadcasting the EPL, but it didn't happen. It's like the EPL cut off their torso in Australia. For me as a Fox customer this new EPL deal, despite its new impressive Optus reach, hasn't worked. I get a big bundle deal with Fox through Telstra that covers everything that i need including Net, Fox, Phone, mobile, etc. Optus contacted me, talked me through the possibilities of the EPL and their deal and how to use the platform. For me it just sounded dumb, confusing and extra cash to watch something i got before as part of my Fox package. Its not like i was ever going to cancel Fox, and the all access to my other sports on Fox just to get access to EPL on Optus. Needless to say for the first time since 1998 Ive seen zero EPL matches this year. Early on I was disappointed, especially when the NRL shut down. But the NFL really filled the void bigger than ever this year and soon I'd stopped thinking about the EPL. Yeah, i still know who finished 1st to 6th in order. I know Swansea and Leicester avoided relegation, and that Middlesbrough got bounced, but that's it. I read the odd article, watched EPL news grabs but reality, I've become out of touch with the players, in a European competition that can see squads change quickly. Basically I've probably now become lost to the EPL, lost because of the broadcast decisions of this year. Good luck to them, that's why they're on the big bucks. However in my circle of friends, 80% this year watched less than 5 EPL matches, and what they watched were broadcast in inner city bars. But Yep, 20% of my mates took up Optus.... and maybe that's where the big deal people see the big winning picture right there!

Those that follow the EPL up here weren't to happy when Optus got the rights - Optus only works in parts of Darwin (if ur lucky) and you can forget about the rest of the NT. I've heard of people doubling up on interest with Telstra - surely there's another way?? It hasn't been advertised at all up here - assuming Optus has advertised heavily in metro areas?? The number of people that have signed on seem decent. Would be interesting to know what others have experienced in the regions.

Happy you have enjoyed the optus coverage. Not sure how you can say Foxtel were complacent though - they showed every game live and games on the same time could be accessed via red button. Given i was never one to stay up late, taping the games and watching them the next morning on IQ was brilliant. Enjoyed using my dads account to stream foxtel go at my apartment then hook a cable into the LED to watch it on a bigscreen. I did not use optus so cannot comment on their service. Perhaps foxtels complacency was not bidding higher than optus but i have no idea about foxtels financial position to comment. As people have mentioned, spare money put to good use IMO with BeIN & club channels. Comes down to a frequent dilemma, if you just followed 1 sport you would fork the money out for optus EPL but when you watch 10 sports across many leagues and you want to tape and watch on delay, you cant beat foxtel.

if you're with Optus Stuart, paying $85/month min, don't they give your their TV box for free, just like your Foxtel box? so you don't have to cast from your smart phone? I wish Optus would add a smart TV link so you could access directly, without signing on for one of their plans.

Harry, I'm not at EPL fan so I'm not going to argue the merits of who knows what or who won what because I don't actively follow it. What I do know is: - The FoxSports website and FB regularly report on the EPL, like several times a day (I know because it gets in the way of their A league reporting) - they have several channels of club based channels on Fox. I've seen them. - SBS carry a game a week which often out-rates the HAL. I don't know that for sure but that's what AFL types like Mr Football post. - and Optus have way more customers than Fox, and they are advertising the SPL to all of them. That's visibility. Too many people are projecting their personal opinions on to this one, that's getting in the way of facts.

I pretty much stopped paying to watch Football since I moved to Australia. In Europe I bought a ticket and went to the stadium of my local team. In Australia I stream Euro Football for free. I won't buy Foxtel, Optus, Bein or whatever. Every now and then I go and watch my local NPL team, but I'm not too motivated because they can't get promoted - THAT IS THE KILLER. If there was promotion - relegation, I would have much more desire to watch them and there would be a lot more fans in the stadium. Even if my NPL team wins the comp, it means nothing. They can't move up and challenge the spoiled A-League teams, so I just don't care. As long as there is no promotion - relegation, Football in Australia is just not interesting to me. It's all about competition. Win, win, win, move up a division. Without that it's boring.

Good to hear, Stuart. Based on all the information we have, I can't see Foxtel ever paying $63m per year for EPL rights. If we assume Foxtel generates $900/year revenue from each subscription, it means Foxel would need 70,000 EPL fans to subscribe to cover this $63m investment. So, it all depends on the ROI that Optus is receiving from its EPL investment. In its Q4 statement to the markets, Optus reported: Optus had its strongest quarter of mobile handset growth in five years, gaining 78,000 postpaid and 64,000 prepaid So, it's not unreasonable to speculate Optus will justify a $63m/yr investment in EPL. I doubt Foxtel ever will.

As someone with 4 fantasy EPL teams for the last 10 years and who watched at least 2 EPL games a week . Now as this season comes to a close, I have watched 2 games total on SBS I am giving up my fantasy league teams due to not knowing what is going on player/team wise and walking away from the EPL until it goes back to foxtel I refuse to pay $45 per month to sort of watch it on my computer Thanks

The only thing I can tell you about Aussie Rules is that it rates last as a football code in the world; even way behind Gaelic..

I'm all over it Nemesis. I have chromecast which should be great but no matter what you watch it is inconsistent and unreliable. Technology is not something I struggle with. I have a Huawei phone which is a cracker, more reliable than the ipad, samsung tablet and two iphones we have in the house. The issue is the combination and complication of all these factors and a NBN that still hasn't arrived and may not help. Used to just turn the tv on and watch the games. Optus have made it far too complicated. Hope numbers keep dropping and foxtel swoop in two years time. Great topic for discussion today. Did you notice the absence of certain people from the discussion? All football, love it.

Stuart, you really need to get one of the kids in your school to show you how to "push" the video stream from the mobile to your 65" TV. I don't think anyone is seriously watching Netflix, or sport, on their 7" mobile phone. The idea is to use the phone as the platform to access the digital signal. The phone then sends a signal to your LED TV. You use your LED TV for your eyes & to transfer the signal into your visual cortex.

For what it is worth, I am a long standing foxtel customer and love/live the service. I also happen to be an Optus customer. Despite that, there was no way I was going to take up an extra charge to watch games on small screens with unreliable streaming as a vehicle. Many people, myself included, asked Optus via their online forums what prices would be, when the service would be available etc etc. All questions were stonewalled with a standard response that was essentially, 'we'll let you know when it is available.' It wasn't hard to predict that it would be a disaster. This year I have subsequently watched more French, German and Spanish football than ever before, and frankly, enjoyed the cosmopolitan nature of my viewing habits. My favourite league will always be the A-League because it is my league, with my home team and young Aussies who will one day be Socceroos. I'll keep watching my A-League on foxtel on my 65 inch TV, my IQ box and pause when I need to top up the Shiraz or read some comments on the Roar. Just how I used to watch the EPL really. I thought I might miss it. Then again, I knew the four teams who would fight it out, knew my Hammers would be around mid-table and now care less than I ever have. Great business Optus, you are a disgrace, The EPL should be asking questions of you and what you have done to THEIR product.