A couple of years ago an audience of 150 or so gathered in London to watch the live transmission of a Six Nations rugby match being played at Murrayfield stadium in Edinburgh between Scotland and England.
It wasn’t much of a game but that really didn’t matter. The crowd weren’t there to celebrate rugby but technology, as the entire 80 minutes was shown in 3D on a big screen. And although, on this occasion, special 3D glasses were required, developments in screen technology suggest that we may all be watching sport in 3D high definition without the goggles before long.
Whether 3D will have a significant impact and whether it can become a commercial success remains to be seen. But the fact that it is on the agenda is an indication of the pace of change within the sports broadcast sector since a small bunch of execs met in Monaco at the first Sportel market, 20 years ago.
In the two decades since, sports television and, more recently, online media, have grown at a frightening pace. While ESPN had been ploughing its furrow and setting the benchmark for sports channels since 1979, the first edition of Sportel was held before Sky Sports had even launched. Sky, of course, went on to demonstrate beyond doubt how partnerships between broadcasters and rights owners can change the face of sport.
The blossoming digital environment changed the game still further as Red Button technology enabled mainstream broadcasters to find additional scheduling space for sport and major tournaments began to receive the broadcast coverage they had always believed they deserved. But it was the battle for digital subscribers which underscored sport’s importance to the content mix. Premium sport sells subscriptions like nothing else, placing a massive value on rights for the most compelling properties. And the impact of the money paid by broadcasters has changed the financial dynamics of many sports, in many cases enhancing the sports, driving up quality and levels of professionalism.
The first edition of Sportel coincided with what will come to be regarded as a Golden Age for sports broadcasting. We asked leaders of the sports television industry to share their memories of the key events and most significant moments.
IAN HOLMES, MEDIA RIGHTS, FORMULA ONE MANAGEMENT LTD: “There is now at least one local domestic sports channel in most countries in the world and those that don’t have their own are invariably served by a myriad of pan-regional offerings.”
LAURENT-ERIC LE LAY CHAIRMAN & CEO EUROSPORT GROUP: “Media convergence has created a new dynamic for the entire sports industry by stimulating broadcasters, rights holders and producers to rethink the way they produce events.”
JOHN KOSNER, SVP AND GENERAL MANAGER, ESPN DIGITAL MEDIA: “Digital media has broken down geographic, business and technological barriers. As we say in sports, it’s been a “game changer. We are just starting to appreciate the significance.”
SIMON THOMAS, MANAGING DIRECTOR TELEVISION, T.E.A.M MARKETING: “[In the early 1990s] the industry saw an increased sophistication on the part of rights buyers, producers, and sellers, and an influx of money into premium sports rights.”
MARCUS LUER, GROUP CEO, TOTAL SPORTS ASIA: “It’s about telling a story, letting the viewer in on it and a chance to get as close as possible to the action.”
JACQUES BRAUN, MEDIAMETRIE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, EURODATA TV WORLDWIDE VICE PRESIDENT: “Sport imitates fiction where the actors are the drivers or players, the sets are the grand prix or the stadiums and suspense grows over the season, episode after episode until the finale.”
AARTI SINGH DABAS, MEDIA RIGHTS & BROADCAST MANAGER, ICC: “Back in 1998, under the astute Presidency of Jagmohan Dalmiya, the ICC sold its media rights for the first time, a move which which revolutionised the media rights fees coming into the central pot.”
