From http://www.leaguehq.com.au/news/new...ty-afl-contract/2007/04/27/1177459987685.html
NRL games could be telecast on the ABC or SBS if free-to-air coverage in the frontier territory of the code does not improve, says NRL chief executive David Gallop. Gallop's threat follows a meeting in Sydney on Thursday with Channel Nine chiefs Jeff Browne and Steve Crawley and an increasingly frustrated Melbourne Storm boss Brian Waldron, who is angry that last night's grand final rematch was not due to be shown until 11.45pm in Victoria. Channel Nine preferred to run a Sean Penn movie, I Am Sam. Waldron has also demanded answers on why Friday night matches can't be shown on pay TV in Victoria in the same way AFL matches are telecast to northern states on Foxtel.
Gallop, angry he is the focus of accusations that he secured an inferior TV deal compared to the AFL and caught in the middle of a pass-the-blame game by Channel Nine and Fox Sports, hit back yesterday, saying games could be consigned to the ABC and SBS. "We gained guarantees in terms of broadcast times for our major events and for coverage of weekly matches," he said of the NRL's much-criticised TV contract. "These include the ability to negotiate with SBS or the ABC where Nine can't meet its commitments. Ultimately, that may well prove more valuable than a 'split' feed on a pay TV channel."
This a reference to AFL's broadcasting deal, which allows Channel Seven to show Friday night's match of the round in the southern states and Foxtel to carry it to NSW, the ACT and Queensland. Gallop is incensed he had been told pay TV can't split signals, yet Foxtel shows AFL's best game in areas where Seven does not, meaning it is seen live nationally.
However, Fox Sports chief David Malone inferred in an answer to the Herald that the NRL doesn't enjoy the same opportunity simply because Gallop did not ask for it. "That is a question for Channel Nine and the NRL," he said of Friday night games not being shown in frontier states. "The NRL rights deal did not include provision to do that, whereas the AFL deal does."
Channel Nine's director of sport, Crawley, refused to comment on the meeting with Waldron but it appears the network is keen to grow the code in the south by inviting Fox Sports to the negotiating table. The likelihood of Nine games being shown in Victoria, however, is remote, with the current Melbourne programmer believing a NRL blackout helps win the ratings week. This is despite Melbourne ratings for last year's NRL grand final exceeding Sydney numbers by about 100,000.
Gallop is convinced Melbourne's future lies with free-to-air coverage, even on the ABC or SBS, despite the possibility of Fox Sport's involvement. Taking a shot at Fox Sports - which is half owned by News Ltd, which half owns the NRL - he said: "Our focus on Melbourne is to drive a better free-to-air solution, not one where people have to pay to access the game. If we are going to grow Melbourne, the first preference is to have the game going in more than the one in five homes that currently have pay TV."
Taking a jab at the AFL, he said: "Financially, we all know the AFL got hit with a rainbow because of Kerry Packer's shrewd negotiating skills and the competitive spirit he retained, even in his final days. But in terms of coverage on free-to-air, their fans are complaining they've gone backwards, while we've increased our coverage by 50 per cent with a second Friday night match."
So Gallop's finally being shown up for the puppet he has been in trumpeting this dud TV deal and he's not happy about it. And he blames Nein? F*ck off idiot. Nein are in it for what they can get. The NRL would have done well to take the same line but it's too late now.
Those soft-ass guarantees of exposure in the frontier states have been shown to be the fraud they were seen as at the time, something Gallop insisted was not the case. Nein and News were way too smart for him, but that's not hard when you opponent has both hands tied behind his back.
NRL games could be telecast on the ABC or SBS if free-to-air coverage in the frontier territory of the code does not improve, says NRL chief executive David Gallop. Gallop's threat follows a meeting in Sydney on Thursday with Channel Nine chiefs Jeff Browne and Steve Crawley and an increasingly frustrated Melbourne Storm boss Brian Waldron, who is angry that last night's grand final rematch was not due to be shown until 11.45pm in Victoria. Channel Nine preferred to run a Sean Penn movie, I Am Sam. Waldron has also demanded answers on why Friday night matches can't be shown on pay TV in Victoria in the same way AFL matches are telecast to northern states on Foxtel.
Gallop, angry he is the focus of accusations that he secured an inferior TV deal compared to the AFL and caught in the middle of a pass-the-blame game by Channel Nine and Fox Sports, hit back yesterday, saying games could be consigned to the ABC and SBS. "We gained guarantees in terms of broadcast times for our major events and for coverage of weekly matches," he said of the NRL's much-criticised TV contract. "These include the ability to negotiate with SBS or the ABC where Nine can't meet its commitments. Ultimately, that may well prove more valuable than a 'split' feed on a pay TV channel."
This a reference to AFL's broadcasting deal, which allows Channel Seven to show Friday night's match of the round in the southern states and Foxtel to carry it to NSW, the ACT and Queensland. Gallop is incensed he had been told pay TV can't split signals, yet Foxtel shows AFL's best game in areas where Seven does not, meaning it is seen live nationally.
However, Fox Sports chief David Malone inferred in an answer to the Herald that the NRL doesn't enjoy the same opportunity simply because Gallop did not ask for it. "That is a question for Channel Nine and the NRL," he said of Friday night games not being shown in frontier states. "The NRL rights deal did not include provision to do that, whereas the AFL deal does."
Channel Nine's director of sport, Crawley, refused to comment on the meeting with Waldron but it appears the network is keen to grow the code in the south by inviting Fox Sports to the negotiating table. The likelihood of Nine games being shown in Victoria, however, is remote, with the current Melbourne programmer believing a NRL blackout helps win the ratings week. This is despite Melbourne ratings for last year's NRL grand final exceeding Sydney numbers by about 100,000.
Gallop is convinced Melbourne's future lies with free-to-air coverage, even on the ABC or SBS, despite the possibility of Fox Sport's involvement. Taking a shot at Fox Sports - which is half owned by News Ltd, which half owns the NRL - he said: "Our focus on Melbourne is to drive a better free-to-air solution, not one where people have to pay to access the game. If we are going to grow Melbourne, the first preference is to have the game going in more than the one in five homes that currently have pay TV."
Taking a jab at the AFL, he said: "Financially, we all know the AFL got hit with a rainbow because of Kerry Packer's shrewd negotiating skills and the competitive spirit he retained, even in his final days. But in terms of coverage on free-to-air, their fans are complaining they've gone backwards, while we've increased our coverage by 50 per cent with a second Friday night match."
So Gallop's finally being shown up for the puppet he has been in trumpeting this dud TV deal and he's not happy about it. And he blames Nein? F*ck off idiot. Nein are in it for what they can get. The NRL would have done well to take the same line but it's too late now.
Those soft-ass guarantees of exposure in the frontier states have been shown to be the fraud they were seen as at the time, something Gallop insisted was not the case. Nein and News were way too smart for him, but that's not hard when you opponent has both hands tied behind his back.
