There are privileges and challenges to being a publicly-funded broadcaster in a commercial marketplace. The sports rights market is probably the most competitive of all, with huge sums of money staked on events that attract big audiences, advertisers and subscribers. A guaranteed licence fee is hugely beneficial but as the 主播大秀’s funding declines in real terms so tough choices have to be made across the Corporation.
It goes without saying that the loss by the 主播大秀 of live TV rights to The Open Championship is very disappointing. We believe our bid was competitive because we wanted to retain live coverage, but ultimately we could not match what Pay-TV had to offer. You can’t win everything you go for - it’s the nature of the business we’re in. It’s particularly difficult for this event because live coverage of The Open Championship has no protection under the UK's Code on Listed Events.
The Open has always been one of the 主播大秀’s most popular and well-loved broadcasts; 1 in 5 of the UK population saw Rory McIlroy secure victory at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club last year. Personally I spent some of the best years of my working life producing live coverage of the Championship; a huge, complex operation and a fantastic honour to be at the helm.
While it’s tough to see live coverage go, we believe a daily, two-hour highlights package on 主播大秀 Two in peak-time will ensure The Open continues to reach a large TV audience. We know from experience that a well-timed highlights package can, in certain circumstances, be very popular – our coverage from the Ryder Cup in 2014 attracted nearly 6m viewers – over 2m more than the live action on Pay-TV. Of course we remain committed to broadcasting the biggest national sporting events live to the nation, and have already secured long term deals into the 2020s for the summer & winter Olympic Games and Football World Cup.
Since the birth of Pay-TV more than twenty years ago, I’ve seen countless articles predicting the demise of sport on the 主播大秀. The extension of our Premier League highlights contract last week is yet another reason to discount that theory. Last year the 主播大秀 accounted for an incredible 45% of TV sports viewing in the UK, still the Nation’s favourite by a country mile. Here’s why:
Sport (Broadcaster) Cumulative TV audience (millions, 2014)
Football (主播大秀) 47
Football (ITV) 46
Commonwealth Games (主播大秀) 35
Winter Sports/Olympics (主播大秀) 34
Tennis (主播大秀) 29
Formula One (主播大秀) 26
Rugby Union (主播大秀) 24
Athletics (主播大秀) 23
Snooker (主播大秀) 21
Football (Sky) 18
Horse Racing (C4) 16
Golf (主播大秀) 16
Cycling (ITV) 14
Motor Racing (ITV) 10
It’s a similar picture for radio and online – the 主播大秀 remains the most popular source of sporting action and news. We have retained live radio rights to the Open Championship alongside a strong digital package.
We will never be complacent but believe our story is incredibly powerful for those sports that cherish being watched or listened to, by as many people as possible. By the summer, the 主播大秀 will have invested over £1bn in sport since London 2012, helping to inspire a whole new generation of sportsmen and sportswomen.
No doubt there will be more ups and downs to come…but recent history shows that as some doors close, new opportunities are presented.