Warburton rarely gets any praise from me these days but I say good on him for wanting to terminate this deal which has been atrocious from the start.
Save some cash from this deal and invest it to other parts of the network (not to mention repay the debts that started when Worner was in control).
Hopefully they try and get the Tennis back from Nine once it expires
They will, but I hope that 9 keeps it.
Should we have a new thread for the new FTA rights? Or just talk about it on 10 and 9’s threads?
Aside from Fox, where else will the cricket go? I can’t see Ten taking it, and as much as it’d be somewhat relieving to see Nine back with the cricket, if only for nostalgic reasons, I can’t see them back either.
CA might have to kowtow to Seven for the time being and work something out.
Well their fans will care for those who don’t pay for pay tv services. I understand it’s business here, but leaving fox cricket as the sole home for all cricket would be detrimental in my opinion to fans and Cricket as a whole. I hope Nine may consider buying the rights for the Aussie broadcast rights.
It would be nice to see it on 10 but because it is not exclusive and have cut their sports department they won’t want it and Nine will only want tests on the cheap considering they have to work with the idiots at fox.
This was always the danger of going with seven/fox. CA stuffed up by not taking the combined 9/10 deal on a exclusive basis.
According to The Daily Telegraph , SWM has sent a legal letter to Cricket Australia informing the governing board it is cancelling the contract.
A Seven spokesperson provided B&T with the following statement: “Seven has no further comment to make but confirms the report.”
Fox Sports – also a Cricket Australia broadcast partner – is also said to be concerned about the upcoming summer.
While some have suggested this could be a tactic from Seven to renegotiate the existing deal at a cheaper price, The Australian has reported SWM is adamant about terminating the deal.
One other thing to add - according to that Australian article you linked to:
Fox Sports is also understood to be unhappy with the deal, and may take similar action to Seven.
Think if CA did do what you suggested, they might still have found themselves in the same predicament they’re now in any way. The problem seems to be twofold - Seven/Fox being dissatisfied with CA and Warburton having a very different view about the Seven component of the deal compared to the previous management.
Based on all the reporting done about this current saga, reckon the first aspect might have still happened if there were different rightsholders.
Cricket Australia released a brief statement addressing the claims from Seven, saying as long as it provides a full summer of cricket, it will not be in breach of the free-to-air broadcast deal.
“Cricket Australia remains in ongoing discussions with the Seven Network about delivering a compelling summer of cricket,” Cricket Australia (CA) said.
“CA is committed to fulfilling its contractual obligations to all its partners this season.”
Cricket Australia could be forced to fast-track a search for a new free-to-air broadcast partner if Seven follows through in terminating its contract and could even begin the international cricket calendar without a broadcast partner.
The knock-on effects of the broadcast deal being terminated could be disastrous for Cricket Australia and the BBL, with sponsors reportedly likely to ask for revised, discounted deals due to the broadcast disruptions.
Not to this extent.
10 will hardly want the dregs now and go back to low ratings shares in January with a diluted BBL.
The BBL would be much more attractive on an exclusive basis.
Theres’s no anti siphoning for the BBL so they might capitulate to Fox and then the competition will inevitably fold.
Tests can be on sold to maybe 9 on the cheap.
I really hope the BBL doesn’t fold!
It won’t fold. It was a success as a Fox Sports exclusive in the early days. Obviously won’t capture the imagination of the fans in the halcyon channel 10 years.
Players should expect a hit to hip pocket tho.
I think what ever happens there will still be free to air cricket this summer (including Tests and BBL). CA will cave into Seven’s demands eventually. If they don’t, another FTA broadcaster will bid for the rights far cheaper - it’s now up to CA to work out whether Seven or another FTA bid is better value for them.
In terms of coverage, if another FTA network was to get the rights instead of Seven I suspect they will just simulcast the same coverage as Fox Cricket. It will done on the cheap no matter what by Fox Cricket and whatever FTA broadcaster is involved, at least for the next couple of summers until the post-Covid recovery occurs.
CA should play hardball with Seven and force to them to stick to their contract or at least extract a hefty fee if they cancel the contract.
I understand that Seven might feel they’re owed a small discount as the quality of the BBL will decline due COVID impacting the scheduling, no crowds, and forcing the creation of hubs, but it seems Seven want a lot more.
they better get their act together, there are Women’s Internationals at the end of the month
As said before, they are (sadly) the least of their worries.
Today, I couldn’t believe with Channel Seven planning to get rid of the cricket coverage. THis is turning into a game of brinkmanship. Channel Seven is planning to cancel the remainder of the $450 million broadcast cricketing deal. With 4 years remaining on their contract deal! I even worried that the BBL will be diminished due to player unavailability and lower crowd numbers. This year has been a very tough year for Channel Seven, Cricket Australia with the COVID19 pandemic. Cricket Australia has done a lot of damage to the sport. Some overseas players who are planning to play BBL10 may not come to Australia due to restrictions. What the hell has it happened with the cricket on 7? Channel 7 literally turned its coverage into a dog’s breakfast. To have the Test cricket simulcast with Fox Cricket is chewing up FTA viewers. And now, the Big Bash. Most of the BBL matches are Fox produced, while a few of the BBL matches are Channel Seven produced. Does it make a lot of difference why CHannel 7 produces BBL matches?
It depends on the specifics of the contract though.
If CA have breached the contract in a way that allows 7 to cancel the contract, they can’t force them to stay.
If CA haven’t, it still probably makes sense to re-negotiate with 7 to keep them somewhat happy given a potential lack of cashed up FTA bidders.