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AFL aims for Friday night fix
5:03:24 PM Tue 11 May, 2004
Paul Gough
Sportal www.afl.com.au
The AFL will begin formal discussions for a new television broadcasting agreement within months with improved coverage in New South Wales, Queensland and the ACT a top priority.
While the current five year deal with Channels Nine and Ten and Foxtel still has two more seasons to run after this year, AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou told afl.com.au the league is aiming to finalise its new broadcast agreement by the end of 2005.
That would give whoever wins the lucrative rights a year to prepare to take over the broadcasting of the game from the start of the 2007 season.
And while the AFL hopes and expects the new deal will exceed the current $500 million deal ? the rights will not necessarily just go to the highest bidder.
Instead the AFL wants to ensure that the next contract ensures improved coverage of the game in the northern states.
?There is a list of qualitative things that we have collected during the first three years of our broadcast agreement which we know can improve our current agreement,? Demetriou said in an exclusive interview with afl.com.au.
?And they will be high priorities for the AFL when it discusses the next broadcast agreement.?
?And the perfect example is the Canberra, Wagga and Gold Coast blackspots in our broadcast agreement.?
The AFL is also concerned about the lack of prime-time coverage of its showcase Friday and Saturday night games in Sydney and Brisbane (except when the Swans or Lions are playing ) with such games often not starting until 11.15 on Friday nights and after 10.30 on Saturday night.
With the AFL spending millions of dollars on game development in the traditional rugby states of New South Wales and Queensland, Demetriou conceded the best way to boost the popularity of Australian Rules football up north is to ensure prime-time television coverage.
With the AFL likely to play hard-ball over ensuring prime-time Friday night and Saturday night television coverage in its next broadcasting agreement ? this opens the door for Channel Seven to at least regain some of the television rights.
Channel Seven held the broadcast rights for every year (except 1987) up until the end of 2001 when they lost the rights to Nine, Ten and Foxtel.
However with the rights again unlikely to be taken solely by just one network due to the cost and demands involved, Seven ? whose ratings in Victoria in particular have plummeted since losing AFL games ? could regain Friday or Saturday night games if they can guarantee prime-time coverage in New South Wales, Queensland and the ACT.
?I?m sure there will be a number of things we will discuss but Friday nights in the northern states is a high priority for the AFL,? Demetriou said.
?We have had preliminary discussions but formal discussions, as part of a process that will be headed up by Ben Buckley (the AFL?s general manager of Broadcasting and Major Projects) will commence in the second half of this year.?
At present Channel Nine has the rights to show the Friday night game and two Sunday games, Channel Ten shows one Saturday afternoon game and one Saturday night game with the other three games shown live by Foxtel ? which is likely to retain similar rights in the next agreement regardless of which free-to-air networks wins the rights.
However while the Friday night game on Nine is shown in prime-time in Melbourne, Perth and Adelaide, rugby league gets the prime-time coverage in New South Wales and Queensland with the AFL match not starting until after the league match has finished.
And on Saturday night Ten shows local programs (except when the Swans or Lions are playing) at prime-time in New South Wales, Queensland and the ACT instead of the AFL, which usually starts around 10.30pm.
5:03:24 PM Tue 11 May, 2004
Paul Gough
Sportal www.afl.com.au
The AFL will begin formal discussions for a new television broadcasting agreement within months with improved coverage in New South Wales, Queensland and the ACT a top priority.
While the current five year deal with Channels Nine and Ten and Foxtel still has two more seasons to run after this year, AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou told afl.com.au the league is aiming to finalise its new broadcast agreement by the end of 2005.
That would give whoever wins the lucrative rights a year to prepare to take over the broadcasting of the game from the start of the 2007 season.
And while the AFL hopes and expects the new deal will exceed the current $500 million deal ? the rights will not necessarily just go to the highest bidder.
Instead the AFL wants to ensure that the next contract ensures improved coverage of the game in the northern states.
?There is a list of qualitative things that we have collected during the first three years of our broadcast agreement which we know can improve our current agreement,? Demetriou said in an exclusive interview with afl.com.au.
?And they will be high priorities for the AFL when it discusses the next broadcast agreement.?
?And the perfect example is the Canberra, Wagga and Gold Coast blackspots in our broadcast agreement.?
The AFL is also concerned about the lack of prime-time coverage of its showcase Friday and Saturday night games in Sydney and Brisbane (except when the Swans or Lions are playing ) with such games often not starting until 11.15 on Friday nights and after 10.30 on Saturday night.
With the AFL spending millions of dollars on game development in the traditional rugby states of New South Wales and Queensland, Demetriou conceded the best way to boost the popularity of Australian Rules football up north is to ensure prime-time television coverage.
With the AFL likely to play hard-ball over ensuring prime-time Friday night and Saturday night television coverage in its next broadcasting agreement ? this opens the door for Channel Seven to at least regain some of the television rights.
Channel Seven held the broadcast rights for every year (except 1987) up until the end of 2001 when they lost the rights to Nine, Ten and Foxtel.
However with the rights again unlikely to be taken solely by just one network due to the cost and demands involved, Seven ? whose ratings in Victoria in particular have plummeted since losing AFL games ? could regain Friday or Saturday night games if they can guarantee prime-time coverage in New South Wales, Queensland and the ACT.
?I?m sure there will be a number of things we will discuss but Friday nights in the northern states is a high priority for the AFL,? Demetriou said.
?We have had preliminary discussions but formal discussions, as part of a process that will be headed up by Ben Buckley (the AFL?s general manager of Broadcasting and Major Projects) will commence in the second half of this year.?
At present Channel Nine has the rights to show the Friday night game and two Sunday games, Channel Ten shows one Saturday afternoon game and one Saturday night game with the other three games shown live by Foxtel ? which is likely to retain similar rights in the next agreement regardless of which free-to-air networks wins the rights.
However while the Friday night game on Nine is shown in prime-time in Melbourne, Perth and Adelaide, rugby league gets the prime-time coverage in New South Wales and Queensland with the AFL match not starting until after the league match has finished.
And on Saturday night Ten shows local programs (except when the Swans or Lions are playing) at prime-time in New South Wales, Queensland and the ACT instead of the AFL, which usually starts around 10.30pm.
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