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Sky is the limit
By Will last year, mid-July, 2 Comments »
I find this overwhelmingly depressing.
Official television industry viewing figures show that Sunday’s cricket was watched by 358,000 people on average between 10am and 2pm, then after two, until that absorbing close, by an average of 800,000. The peak audience, at 6.30?6.45pm, to watch Panesar and Anderson successfully see England to the draw, was 1.47m.
That is considered a respectable pay-television audience by the England and Wales Cricket Board, Sky and TV insiders. It does not, however, compare with the huge audiences drawn to the Ashes on free-to-air Channel 4 in 2005. Then, the peak periods of the third, fourth and fifth Tests, all similarly thrilling closing moments, were watched by 7.48m, 8.2m and 7.2m people respectively. Cricket garnered huge, growing audiences; the 8.2m fourth Test peak drew a 47% share of people watching television at the time.
Any comparison with this year must allow for the fact that we have had only the first Test but the ECB’s decision to sell the rights exclusively to BSkyB has dramatically cut the television audience for its sport. Despite the oceans of top action BSkyB has bought up exclusively, with not a single Premier League football match having ever been shown live on free-to-air television in 17 years, and despite the universally recognised quality of its coverage, under a quarter, 6m, of British homes subscribe to Sky Sports.
Full piece at The Guardian. The impact of ECB’s massive own goal won’t be felt fully for another decade, but it will eventually.
2 Comments »Sky High Disappointment
By Richard Seeckts last year, mid-June, 2 Comments »
Sky TV, who hold all the aces for cricket broadcasting in the UK since the ECB dropped its trousers four years ago, seems to have become a victim of its own technological success. Whatever one thinks of Sky’s unrivalled record for turning great sportsmen and Paul Allott into bonkers or deathly dull commentators, the advances in technology every year are mighty impressive.
Great play is currently being made of the HD (High Definition) service, with former England captains extolling its virtues frequently to sell the service for the Ashes series. Sky claims to have “a huge number of people registering to upgrade”.
Trouble is that if you apply for it now you will probably get a response from Sky saying “you’ll be able to complete your order and arrange installation in around 3 months”. So there’s a reasonable chance of seeing that scheduling stinker, the 7th ODI from Chester-le-Street on 20th September. High definition rain, then.
2 Comments »Cricket to return to terrestrial?
By Will last year, at the end of January, 11 Comments »
Having been away for a few days, this passed me by. It’s reported in The Grauniad that cricket could make a return to free-to-air TV sooner rather than later, if Andy Burnham (government’s culture secretary) has anything to do with it.
I’ve banged on about this for years. On the one hand, the ECB seek and need vast sums of money, which BSkyB can happily provide them. They pledge a percentage of that to grassroots cricket, development and other charitable activities. But in selling the rights to a pay-per-view broadcaster they cut the prospective number of viewers by a significant margin. Yes, they are piling money into things like Chance to Shine – and other initiatives which promote cricket in deprived socioeconomic areas of the country – but it could also be argued that Sky subscribers themselves are an elite. They are still a minority, after all (Sky subscriber stats anyone?). If they sold it to the BBC, a free-to-air broadcaster, suddenly English cricket is given essentially free advertising and the seeds of cricket’s interest are planted among millions of children, lazily flicking from CBeebies to Newsround on their summer holidays when they catch sight of Flintoff smacking Ponting in the face. What’s that? Some bloke’s been hit on the head by a red ball. Brilliant! I could do that. I will do that! Not that I’m advocating violence, but let’s face it: we all love to see a batsman sconned, especially when we’re 10.
That’s an idealistic and slightly naive point of view. I know that. I know the ECB needs money if they’re to compete with other national boards, but imagine if the 2005 Ashes hadn’t been on Sky. Would the country have whipped itself up into such an orgy? Yes, it probably would have, but not to the same frenzied extent. This year’s Ashes is the first in Britain not to be televised for free, and for all Sky’s excellence – their highlights package is usually 2 or 3 hours’ worth each day, for example, and the coverage is mostly quality – they can’t penetrate the country’s subconscious like Channel 4 or the BBC did. £300 million is £300 million, but how many millions of schoolchildren will be not bovvered because the Ashes is on Sky?
So. Returning in a roundabout way to the Guardian piece, it seems the various different formats of the game could be sold off independently from one another.
It is believed that placing international Twenty20 cricket on the list would be welcomed by free-to-air broadcasters such as the BBC, which would find it easier to schedule than Test cricket, and appeal to potential new, and younger, audiences.
As broadcasters and governing bodies begin jockeying for position ahead of the first review of the list for 10 years, the BBC is also expected to argue that the Ryder Cup and British and Irish Lions rugby union tours should be added to the list of protected events such as the FA Cup final, the Derby and the football World Cup that have “special national resonance” and “serve to unite the nation”.
Your thoughts, ladies and gentlemen, are welcomed in the comments.
(Also see TV won England the Ashes from three years ago)
(Also, I appreciate there’s a lot of Sky banners at the moment. I’m a sell-out. Bite me)
11 Comments »If…with Mike Atherton
By Will 3 years ago, at the start of May, 13 Comments »
Has anyone else listened and watched Sky’s advertisement for their all-consuming coverage this summer? It’s fronted (for want of a better word, as it’s a voice over) by Mike Atherton. Now then. Athers is many things, but a voice-over artiste he is not. He sounds about as enthused as a prisoner who’s just been told that, yes, today he is allowed one hour of sunlight as opposed to the usual 45 minutes.
Athers recites Rudyard Kipling’s If and it’s as sickly and inappropriate as it sounds. (not Athers’ fault of course, but Sky’s ferocious marketers)
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:If you can dream–and not make dreams your master,
If you can think–and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build ‘em up with worn-out tools:If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: “Hold on!”If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings–nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And–which is more–you’ll be a Man, my son!
Incidentally I came across some viewing figures on the Beeb yesterday which make make interesting reading. I put them on CI…will dig them out later.
13 Comments »BBC claw back lost ground
By Will 4 years ago, mid-September, 1 Comment »
So, the BBC are going to broadcast highlights of the Ashes this winter – an interesting development as it appears to have come from nowhere. Sky, who were awarded the rights from the ECB almost exactly 12 months ago (earning the English board a reported £200m) – a decision which caused the ECB to hide under the table, with just their greens for comfort in the Anderson shelter. The doodle-bug passed by, though.
Initially I was angry at the ECB – angry at Sky, too. But it’s not Sky’s fault they have the money to beat off the competition; it’s also the apathy, or disinterest of certain other broadcasters, which ended free-to-air cricket. I wonder now if the BBC are starting to regret it.
At the BBC’s Sports Editor’s blog, the director of BBC Sport, Roger Mosey says:
Now, before anyone says it: yes, we’re talking today about highlights and not live cricket on TV. The question of live cricket returning to the BBC is something we’re keeping under review for the future when the contracts next become available.
Perhaps I’m reading too much into this, but “…something we’re keeping under review for the future” is either a typo or suggests the Beeb are almost certainly going to bid for the rights in 2009. When I first read it, I thought Roger said “keeping under wraps” and it still smacks of that.
A criticism, though. With the greatest respect and understanding of the arduous task a TV scheduler must have, the decision to air the highlights a mere couple of hours before the next day’s play is ridiculous. It’s almost not worth having them at all. If I was just a fan and not writing about the game, I’d still sign up to Sky in spite of the BBC’s highlights gesture.
I remain a fan of the Beeb though. Their website is outstanding; they’ve grasped Web 2.0 and are breaking new ground each year. It’s just a shame that they spend more money on makeover shows like What Donkeys Shouldn’t Wear At Christmas rather than what the public really want: live sport.
Anyway, it’s very much a moot point and outdated too. Sky have it, so get over it. They’re ploughing a lot of money into the English game, too.
1 Comment »Cricket AM on Sky
By Will 4 years ago, mid-May, 6 Comments »
I nervously anticipate Sky’s Cricket AM Saturday morning show, which starts this weekend. It could be a winner, or a right winner. Am I at all swayed by the notion of an ex Blue Peter presenter fronting the programme? (sorry, but I am! “Here’s one I made earlier” and all that)
6 Comments »BBC secure radio rights
By Will 4 years ago, mid-February, 4 Comments »
The BBC have secured radio rights in India for four years, which is a welcome relief to those who enjoy Test Match Special. The deal allows them to broadcast England’s current tour of India, and other international teams who visit, over the next four years. Sky, meanwhile, are being shafted by Nimbus, who paid an astonishing amount of money (over $600m) for exclusive rights to broadcast cricket on TV in India.
4 Comments »Restless natives at MCC
By Scott 5 years ago, at the start of December, No Comments; be the first!
The egg’n'bacon crowd are not a happy bunch of campers, and Donald Trelford has penned a rebel’s manifesto.
I often wondered why the MCC gave up running British cricket, and it turns out they were forced to do so by the government of the day, in the interests of openness and transparency. Surveying England’s cricket fortunes since 1968, you would have to suggest it was a bad move even before the ECB sold out the British cricket fan for the Sky shilling.
No Comments »End of the road (for now) for BSkyB deal
By Will 5 years ago, at the end of November, 4 Comments »
The ECB’s decision to give BSkyB exclusive rights to show all Tests on PPV (pay per view) TV is now, almost certainly, non-overturnable. (I don’t know if that word exists, but it’s a cracker.) The following people participated in today’s Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee:
Mr David Collier, Chief Executive, England and Wales Cricket Board, Mr Richard Bevan, Chief Executive, Professional Cricketers’ Association; Mr Roger Mosey, Director of Sport, BBC, Mr Mark Sharman, Controller of Sport, ITV, Mr Andy Duncan, Chief Executive, Channel 4, Mr Colin Campbell, Director of Legal and Business Affairs, Five, Mr Vic Wakeling, Managing Director, Sky Sports (at approximately 10.30 a.m.); Lord Smith of Finsbury and Lord MacLaurin (at approximately 11.00 a.m.); Mr David Brook, Mr Anthony Wreford, and Mr Stedford Wallen, Keep Cricket Free Campaign (at approximately 11.30 a.m.); Rt Hon Richard Caborn MP, Minister for Sport, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (at approximately 11.50 a.m.).
There’s nothing yet at Hansard (incidentally, my family descend from Luke Hansard – the House’s original printer), but Cricinfo have a report here. In it, Caborn says:
“If you are asking me ‘Can a deal be done?’, I don’t think it can,” Caborn said. “I am making no bones about it. I am supporting the ECB in what it has done.”
2009 is how long we’ll have to wait for it to return to terrestrial – although that’s only the end-date of Sky’s contract which will go up for review again. John Howard wouldn’t put up with it, would he? (Scott or whoever – fill me in on the state of play as regards cricket on TV in Australia)
4 Comments »England’s tour of Pakistan on Vodafone
By Will 5 years ago, at the start of November, 1 Comment »
If you like watching TV on a screen about an inch-square, whose battery runs out quicker than anything, and you’re a cricket fan, you might like this:
In order to attract customers to the service Sky is giving all Vodafone Live 3G customers exclusive live coverage of the England cricket team’s tour to Pakistan, starting with the first test in Multan on 12 November. Sky also claims that it will offer both breaking news and sports headlines to Vodafone’s 3G customer base
[Via email - thanks JB]
1 Comment »Cricket’s foot-shooting ability
By Will 5 years ago, mid-September, 2 Comments »
Can’t help feeling that today, having witnessed the most brilliant celebration of an English side to win the Ashes, the ECB’s decision to sell the rights to B$kyB has been even more foolish than we first suspected. Cricket’s ability to shoot itself in the foot is legendary; maybe this sport really is the new Football…
And today I heard that Tessa Jowell, bless ‘er cotton socks, has hinted that it might return as one of the country’s “listed” sports. These “listed” sports, the “crown jewels” (which has its own, unfortunate and obvious meaning in cricket…) are to be reviewed, said Ms Jowell. Hurrah! All is not lost; cricket will return to terrestrial TV after all.
Err, no. The “review” won’t be until 2009.
2 Comments »The BBC and football’s intrusion on our summer of cricket
By Will 5 years ago, mid-August, 3 Comments »
The BBC, who now must be regretting their decision not to fight for the TV rights of cricket in Britain, published an interesting piece on football’s intrusion on our summer of Ashes fun. The Beeb are a non-commercial organisation, despite taxing us each year for the privledge of watching TV, yet their fondness of Football has always irked me somewhat. BBC Radio Five Live is an excellent station, but the dominance Football has had on our airwaves has been depressing for a cricket fan…until this summer! It has been encouraging to see the Beeb spend so much time on cricket on the radio; even their newsreaders seem to have been taught the rules of the game.
They no longer look surprised when uttering “England ended with a score of four HUNDRED and fourty four runs today.” Massive emphasis on HUNDRED. It’s a cricket score, BBC people – they tend to get into the hundreds you know.
Also noteworthy today was the news that the BBC are to broadcast their first cricket match on TV for six years. Before you get excited, it’s only available to the lucky Scots, for their one-day game against the mighty Australians. The Telegraph have more on this.
Are the BBC regretting handing over the rights to Channel 4 (in 1999), and now Sky? You bet they are…
3 Comments »Cricket television coverage
By Will 5 years ago, at the end of February, 2 Comments »
It seems live cricket has died on terrestrial TV in Britain, or at least it has a “death date” starting 2006, as I mentioned back in November. Ofcom has agreed BSkyB a 4 year deal, isolating the British public from watching Cricket on the box. At least The Ashes will still be on C4 this year. On a similar note, what is happening about Australia’s coverage of the Ashes?
For those who want/need it, I’ll be providing DVD highlights of the Ashes after each Test (just need a blank DVD or 3 and for you to pay the postage). More on that later in the year.
2 Comments »Channel 4, Sky and Channel 5
By Will 6 years ago, mid-December, No Comments; be the first!
As was widely reported here in the UK yesterday, Channel 4 have lost the rights to show live cricket in Britain. (not that interesting for non-UK readers…sorry) This has quite massive potential implications on cricket in England and Wales. I don’t know what to think – any comments, feel free to post them. I’d be particularly interested to hear what other countries’ TV rights are (India & Australia in particular – I also remember reading recently that NZ rarely get cricket coverage on TV…true or false?)
Channel 4 bought the rights from the BBC, who lost interest (and couldn’t pay enough) – back then (1998?), opinion was divided as to whether Channel 4 could match the quality of the BBC’s coverage. Channel 4, like the BBC, are “free to air” on terrestrial TV – but unlike the BBC, are a commercial TV station and there was concern that adverts would impede the viewer’s enjoyment of watching live cricket.
All in all, Channel 4 provided excellent coverage with reasonably good commentators (Mark Nicholas, Richie Benaud, Mike Atherton, Boycott, Simon Hughes, Ian Smith, Slater and more) and summarisers. They implemented a number of technological enhancements which have now been used or bought by other stations around the world. They were the first to use Hawk-eye, for example – although none of this technology used was necessarily produced by Channel 4, they had the foresight to use technology to improve the customer’s viewing pleasure.
Most of all – viewers didn’t need to pay extra to watch the cricket. Sky, as most people know, charge exorbitant fees for their services which will dramatically reduce the numbers of armchair cricket fans. Isn’t that how a whole generation were introduced to cricket? By seeing it on TV? I know I was. (Paul Reiffel bowling to England in 1993). Some people are claiming the enourmous fee the ECB have received from Sky (£200m+) will be injected into grass-roots, and will be of massive benefit for the future of English cricket. But, wasn’t it Nasser Hussain who once said that Cricket is entertainment? That the most important people in the game are the spectators and fans?
I’m not anti-Sky – I find their fees very expensive, but they offer undeniable benefits. Digital-quality Television which is unsurpassed in quality (pictorial quality!); they have the majority of radio stations available in digital for no extra cost; regardless of whether you’re a TV-addict or not, there is generally something available to watch that most people would find interesting. I only bought Sky a few years ago and purely to watch the winter tours and rugby, but I must admit to having enjoyed the films and other channels available to me.
It is, as Marcus Trescothick said today, inevitable that Sky would win eventually. The true ramifications won’t be known for a while. Long live TMS, I guess.
No Comments »Sky TV poised to get more England matches
By Will 6 years ago, mid-November, 1 Comment »
Ack, this is worrying news
More of England’s home Test and one-day matches are likely to be available to subscribers to satellite broadcaster BSkyB if a joint bid for TV rights is accepted by the England & Wales Cricket Board.
[via Cricinfo]
It’s just a matter of time, I suppose, before Sky owns all cricket on TV – requiring anyone who wants to watch cricket to subscribe to Sky Sports. Very, very worrying. This will surely frustrate the ECB too who are desperate to promote Sky to a wider audience (but who are so poor that they’ll accept the highest-bidder). Channel 4, the current FTA cricket broadcaster, says:
A report in the Guardian last week indicated that Channel 4 were keen to retain some coverage, but with cricket still attracting what are seen as relatively small audiences, they are believed to be receptive to idea of diluting their commitment.
When Channel 4 bought the rights for all home Test Matches (in 1999??), they said they were commited in promoting the game of cricket – and they’ve done a good job. They have some brilliant, intelligent and funny commentators – far superior to Sky’s [with the exception of Holding and Gower] – and I’m amazed they’ve crumbled so soon.
Just a matter of time now…
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