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BT Buys ESPN UK


Kurtis

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BT buys ESPN UK and Ireland, waves goodbye to ESPN Classic

 

espn.jpg

 

BT's got far more important things to do than fill in the gaps in its fiber broadbandcoverage, like blowing around £10 million ($15 million) on buying ESPN's UK and Ireland channels from Disney. BT is trying to compete with Sky on sporting rights, and needs a channel to broadcast 38 Premier League games a year for the next three years -- which cost the phone company £738 million ($1.1 billion). At the same time, ESPN is shuttering ESPN Classic, the satellite channel dedicated to showing classic sporting events free of charge. Broadly speaking, BT just knows how to brighten our Mondays.

 

http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/25/bt-buys-espn-uk-and-ireland/#continued

 

dunno what this means for US sports like NBA, MLB etc

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In other news Manchester City (the same Manchester city who kicked up a stink when Arsenal charges them £62) charged Chelsea £58 this weekend. Against Modern football indeed.

 

Morale of the story is I am an idiot because my point of view is the massive TV deal that's coming in next season should give clubs the leeway to be more reasonable with ticket prices Silly me.

 

There was a program on last night on BBC North west about ticket prices here and in Germany, £104 for the cheapest season ticket at Bayern. Lol Arsenal vs Spurs tickets are going for £94. Hmmm, Let Sky keep telling you this is the best league in the world. Hope Bayern & Dortmund dominate Europe for the next 15 years.

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In other news Manchester City (the same Manchester city who kicked up a stink when Arsenal charges them £62) charged Chelsea £58 this weekend. Against Modern football indeed.

 

Morale of the story is I am an idiot because my point of view is the massive TV deal that's coming in next season should give clubs the leeway to be more reasonable with ticket prices Silly me.

 

There was a program on last night on BBC North west about ticket prices here and in Germany, £104 for the cheapest season ticket at Bayern. Lol Arsenal vs Spurs tickets are going for £94. Hmmm, Let Sky keep telling you this is the best league in the world. Hope Bayern & Dortmund dominate Europe for the next 15 years.

 

You show me where you see that.

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  • 2 months later...

BT is to offer its new sports channels, offering live Premier League football, free to customers who take its broadband service as the telecoms operator ramps up its challenge to BSkyB's dominance of UK pay-TV.

 
The company also confirmed on Thursday as it launched its sports pay-TV offering at its new broadcasting base in the Olympic Park in Stratford, east London, that former BBC presenter Jake Humphrey will anchor its Premier League coverage.
 
BT, which is launching two TV channels in early August and has also bought most of ESPN UK's operation and sports rights, is aiming to lure customers to its fledgling TV service BT Vision and protect and grow its broadband customer base.
 
It is understood that BT is to offer the "free" channels to its broadband customers, who pay from £15 a month, regardless of whether they take their TV service from rivals including BSkyB. Non-BT customers can pay from £12 to £15 a month for the sports channels.
 
"UK sports fans have had a rough deal for too long," said the BT chief executive, Ian Livingston. "Many have been priced out of the market but we will change this by giving away BT Sport for free with our broadband. BT is the home of broadband so the fight for customers will now take place on our own turf."
 
BT, which is set to launch a multimillion-pound ad campaign to promote its range of sports rights, is expected to start broadcasting the two new channels from August, when it will start broadcasting live Premier League matches from the start of the new football season.
 
The telecoms giant has signed BBC presenters Jake Humphrey and Clare Balding, as well as a number of brand ambassadors including Robin van Persie and Gareth Bale. Rio Ferdinand has also been signed as an interviewer, programme-maker and football expert.
 
BT's ad campaign is currently not booked to air in Sky's 10m-plus households, after the satellite broadcaster refused to allow the ads to run on its Sky Sports portfolio of channels.
 
BT is also aiming to undercut what BSkyB charges pubs and clubs to air Premier League matches.
 
The company paid £738m for 38 Premier League matches a season for the next three years.
 
BT also unveiled details about its lineup of presenters and pundits.
 
Darren Fletcher, a regular on BBC Radio 5 Live, and Ian Darke join as commentators.
 
Michael Owen, who is to retire at the end of the season, has been hired as a co-commentator.
 
Steve McManaman, Owen Hargreaves and David James will offer opinion and analysis.
 
Premier League referee Mark Halsey will join in a "brand new role" in the commentary team working across all of BT's football coverage.
 
ESPN broadcaster Ray Stubbs will join as chief football reporter.
 
BT acquired ESPN's UK channels in February.
 
Journalist and broadcaster Des Kelly has been hired to present a new sports magazine programme called Life's a Pitch.
 
A long list of brand "ambassadors" for the channels includes footballers Daniel Sturridge and Joe Hart and rugby stars Chris Robshaw and Owen Farrell.
 
"We are delighted to unveil today's strong lineup of real sporting experts who will keep our viewers informed and seriously entertained," said Grant Best, senior executive channel producer at BT Sport.
 
BSkyB's share price fell almost 6% as investors reacted to the implications for the satellite broadcaster.
 
BSkyB has done exceedingly well attracting customers to its broadband service, its subscriber base hit 4.4m in at the end of the first quarter, and analysts believe that BT's offer will impact growth.
 
Polo Tang at UBS said that Sky will see a slowdown in new broadband subscriber numbers but he did not believe they will leave "en masse to take up BT Sports".
 
He added that the bulk of Sky's revenues and earnings – more than 80% – come from its 10.4 million pay-TV customers and that the level of the share price fall is "harsh".
 
Tang said that the concern was whether a price war might ensue that will impact the profitability of the "triple-play" market – customers who take a mix of products such as TV, broadband and telephony from one provider.
 
"There may be fears that [sky] retaliates against BT by cutting broadband pricing, leading to a negative impact on the whole triple-play market," he said.
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Humphrey believes there are things BT can do to subtly move it forward again. The cavernous studio will play host to a half-sized football pitch, where pundits will demonstrate what players did or didn't do correctly and there are other technological innovations planned that marry broadband interactivity with live coverage.

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Any word on if they will show NBA?

This is the seller for me tbh

And if it's a month to month sub or a 12 month one

It says there taking over all espn rights but I swere nba is picked up per season deal rather then a xyz year deal

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UFC confirm three-year 'landmark deal' with BT Sport in UKand Ireland The UFC announced "a landmark deal" Tuesday making it official that they have signed a breakthrough 400-hour broadcast agreement with BT for its UK and Ireland television rights.

 

The three-year partnership will see all of UFC’s live and taped programming broadcast on the BT Sport channels and, for the first time, will include originally produced programming for the UK and Irish audience.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship has ambitions to grow its strong UK fanbase and global brand, led by CEO Garry Cook, who came into the expansion role eight months ago.

Cook, Executive Vice President and Managing Director of UFC EMEA, said it was "a landmark deal"

He added: “The keys to success for UFC, in broadcast terms, are to identify strategic partners who are committed to building the business together beyond just airing non-European premium live content.

"UFC athletes are the most committed and dedicated in the world of sport and this new relationship will help people gain a more in depth understanding of the sport and our brand.”

 

It will mark an innovative move for BT Sport.

Simon Green, Head of BT Sport, said: “We’re delighted to have signed this agreement with UFC. We’ve said BT Sport will offer a wide range of sports that appeal to different audiences and we know that UFC has a huge, committed fanbase in the UK and Ireland and we hope they will be excited about our plans to develop the coverage of the sport”.

 

The new UFC/BT Sport deal will result in up to 400 hours of TV programming a year to the UFC’s loyal fanbase, which has previously watched the world’s leading mixed martial arts promotion on Setanta and, for the last three years, ESPN.

BT will begin airing UFC programming from the summer, with the premiere event live on August 3, the superfight between UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo and the American Anthony Pettis, live from Brazil.

 

The new agreement will allow audiences to access a wider range of programming, including more than 30 live broadcasts from around the globe and additional localised and original content, which will help to grow interest in the UFC.

UFC fans will be able to watch all of their favourite programming on the BT Sport channels including current favourite, The Ultimate Fighter®, which is the world’s longest running sports reality TV show.

 

UFC adds to prestigious roster of elite sports being shown on the BT Sport channels including Barclays Premier League football, FA Cup, Aviva Premiership Rugby union and the WTA tour.

 

UFC’s EMEA growth has been unprecedented and continues to define the sports landscape with recent shows in London and Stockholm selling out and showcasing some of the UK and Ireland’s up and coming talent.

 

In 2012 there were over 11,000,000 UK visits to the UFC official website, and the organisation plans to announce further shows in the country to continue to build its fan base and assist the launch of this broadcast relationship.

 

Cook added: “This agreement is a landmark step in UFC’s development in the UK as it will increase our exposure to a much wider and more mainstream sporting audience. It means that the UK joins USA, Canada, Australia and Brazil as one of our largest TV broadcast markets.”

“BT Sport certainly shares our vision for the premium quality broadcast of elite performance sport for our UK audience and we’re very excited about the strategic partnership we’ve entered into.

 

"We look forward to working alongside them and showing a wider fan base how exciting and engaging the UFC is.”

 

 

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