State of Origin’s ad haul stirs rights split talk
The Australian
May 28, 2015 12:00AM
State of Origin fever has emerged as the pound-for-pound most *lucrative sporting event in Australia, driving TV advertising rates to a record high as rugby league bosses give serious consideration to splitting up the media rights to score even bigger profits.
Fierce interstate rivalry between Queensland and NSW has delivered an advertising bonanza for exclusive TV rights holder the Nine Network, which has bumped up rates by 5 per cent, according to insiders. Advertisers in last night’s telecast paid up to $150,000 for a 30-second TV spot amid extraordinary demand.
The Origin series has now eclipsed the AFL and NRL grand finals as the most valuable winter sporting event, putting the three-game series on course to deliver at least $20m in advertising revenues.
The advertising take is a combination of advertising dollars spent on commercial breaks and long-running sponsorships negotiated with the NRL’s commercial partners such as Holden.
A 30-second spot in the NRL grand final can fetch about $100,000 while AFL grand final spots can go for about $135,000.
In an age of fragmented, time-shifted media consumption and increasingly volatile free-to-air TV audiences, one-off events like the Origin series have become even more lucrative for advertisers because they guarantee a large, live audience.
Outside of live sport, only the *finals of popular reality franchises such as MasterChef, The Voice, and My Kitchen Rules can charge a similar premium for advertising slots.
Last year’s Origin series topped the ratings, with the first two games the most watched on Australian TV along with the NRL grand final.
Last night’s telecast was expected to attract 4 million viewers nationally amid bumper audiences across metropolitan and *regional markets in NSW, Queensland and Victoria.
It means the tussle between the Blues and the Maroons pales in comparison to the match that really matters — the one between media companies for control of the rights to show NRL on TV.
In recent high-level briefings for the next TV rights deal, the Australian Rugby League Commission told broadcasters it was likely to separate the game’s major assets in a clear sign of Origin’s *arrival as an annual sports event with almost unrivalled commercial pulling power.
Such a move could see the Seven and Ten networks grab sole rights for State of Origin from *incumbent Nine, which will fight hard to retain the series as the NRL touts a record-breaking deal that should pass the $1.5 billion mark.
Under the NRL’s new five-year deal it had TV revenue of more than $225m last year, up from $101m in 2012 under the previous contract.
Broadcast revenue accounted for 65 per cent of the code’s total income of $344.9m, creating an operating surplus of $49.9m.
Holden has used its three-year $10m naming rights deal to repeat its commitment to manufacturing cars in Australia until 2022. Last night, it launched a new marketing campaign, demonstrating an off-road adventure ride through back-country New Zealand in the new Colorado model.
Holden executive director of marketing Geraldine Davys said the sponsorship was a “perfect fit with the Holden brand”. “Holden is passionate about Australian sport and the State of Origin series is an event that captures the imagination of the nation,” Ms Davys told The Australian.
Nine is not the only winner this week, with metropolitan newspapers like The Daily Telegraph writing additional advertising dollars as big brands book tactical advertisements.
Advertisers including William Hill, Dan Murphy’s and CrownBet have all leveraged an expected spike in print sales, which will be boosted by a 12-page Origin lift-out.
