Optus have announced they will give up exclusive rights to the remainder of the FIFA World Cup, with SBS set to broadcast every match across the knockout stages.
While the original deal struck between the two networks and FIFA saw SBS only broadcasting 25 matches across the entire tournament, Optus have been unable to get their stream working well enough. It saw them bring SBS on to simulcast every match until the end of the group stage on June 20.
SBS, who were set to broadcast four round of 16 matches and two quarter-finals, will now come on board to do every remaining match for the tournament.
Optus CEO Allan Lew said his company were trying to provide choice for frustrated viewers, who took to social media in droves over the opening weekend of the tournament to denounce their coverage.
“We had technical issues with the Optus Sport service over the first weekend of the tournament but we are confident that these issues have now been addressed. All of us at Optus will use what we have learned from this experience to place ourselves ahead in the delivery of content to customers via streaming to their mobile devices,” Mr Lew said.
“Our customers and viewers have been the priority in our decision making and that’s why we have provided several ways to watch the matches, offered refunds and introduced a range of measures to address the technical issues experienced by some Optus Sport viewers.”
Optus have begun offering refunds to customers who paid for their $15 per month subscription fees in the past few days, while the company have also made Optus Sport free to the Australian public until August 31.
The final group games will be played this evening, with the round of 16 starting on Sunday at 12am (AEST).
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