Australian Open switches to 7TWO, but…
Seven exercised its right to switch an Australian Open tennis match to 7TWO. But it seems not everybody is happy.
- Published by David Knox
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Last night Seven exercised its right to switch an Australian Open tennis match to 7TWO when the Jelena Dokic vs Zuzana Ondraskova match ran late. Viewers in Sydney and Melbourne were able to keep watching as play stretched across its 6pm News deadline.
The historic move, which follows Medibank International and AAMI Kooyong Classic games switching to 7TWO last week, was made possible thanks to a relaxing of the Anti-Siphoning rules by Senator Stephen Conroy.
“Viewers were able to see Seven News at 6pm on Channel 7 and the Dokic match on 7TWO meaning viewers had the best of both worlds,” said Seven CEO David Leckie.
Seven has now committed to scheduling matches on 7TWO where matches run over and clash with its regular programming.
But the switch to 7TWO doesn’t mean interstate viewers will start seeing all their games live, and looks set to only be used where a broadcast that has commenced runs over.
Daylight Saving means viewers in Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia are subjected to delays for evening matches. And that’s already attracting some ire as these TV Tonight readers demonstrate:
– So apparently Seven is allowed by the government to show matches on 7TWO but insists on showing it delayed in states other than Vic and NSW. What a Shame! Would Love to have Fox Sports at times like this but too bad i couldn’t afford it.
– Why isn’t 72 currently broadcasting the Groth vs Wickmayer match? Today Tonight is currently aired whilst this match is taking place, and now QLD viewers have just missed an entire set of live tennis?
– Firstly, I’m loving Channel 7′s new technique of splitting the screen in 8 to show simultaneous matches then zooming in and out – it adds to the excitement. However, I so wish they’d show games live into QLD. Their argument is always that the viewers would prefer to watch a full game from the start so they are simply giving viewers what they want. Rubbish. I’d prefer to come straight into the middle of a game after the news and watch it live. I just made the mistake of perusing news headlines on my iphone during an ad break and it said who won the game I was watching.
– The Jammilla Groth game is well finished and guess what, Seven Perth is still telecasting the event and we already know the result.
– Great! Australian playing Rod Laver Arena at 7 pm (EST) and what does Channel 7 give WA viewers- a delayed telecast at 10pm EST! Dont you get it we want it live!!!! !! Jarmilla’s game has started and we are watching re-runs of some crap! At least put it on 7-2 so those of us interested can watch it live!! After all we can get live scores on the web of your website or the Australian Open website- this is the 21st century!! Common 7 Perth!!!
It could be a long two weeks….
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- Tagged with AAMI Kooyong Classic, Australian Open, Medibank International, Seven News
53 Responses
It’s a disgrace that the nation’s host broadcaster cannot telecast the Australian Open live in all states across Australia. It’s unbelievable how difficult channel 7 is making it for themselves just to screw around with people. Just a shame that the whole nation cannot watch their own players out on centre court live. Totally un-Australian.
@Steve – SA can never be on the east coast time zone, because of it’s physical location – it will always be central daylight saving time – it’s all got to do the latitude lines…
I am in WA and the only thing that bothered me was that on the weekend the bloody tennis was on both channels (7 and 7two)! Give me a flipping break.
@FJ. 7 have a long way to catch up to 9 in the showing sports in hd stakes. 7 are about 6 years behind 9
why can’t they put it on 7mates as well so we can watch it in High Def?
Show 9 they are behind the times for not showing The Ashes in HD.
Forget about daylight savings, thats a minor issue, well so i would think. I thought the problem would be getting equal access to live sport no matter where you live.
I totally agree. There’s no excuse not to have it live.I don’t bother to watch it with the 3 hour time difference in Perth the game is pretty much over.
Channel 7 just seems to have the tennis matches as per their schedule and don’t seem to want to think out side states who are not in the same timezone.
We are living in a world with many if not most people have access to internet. It makes absolutely no sense to show any sports in delayed cause most people would already know the score anyway. 1st world country with 3rd world-quality of sports coverage, what a shame. No wonder the ratings for the night session were so low, why would people want to watch them when they already know the score.
A leopard never changes his spots and that is the same with 7 and their rubbish effort at covering sports in this country
Forgot to mention have it Live 7pm AEDT on 7TWO then switch to the main channel once the news finishes.
@ Steve, Completely agree with you. In QLD it always comes back to the same problem – our lack of daylight savings! Why does seven start the night session at 7pm AEDT around the country (6pm in QLD) and then switch over to seven from 7pm local time so everyone can enjoy it Live. Seems like the best option, doesn’t it?
I’m in Sydney so i don’t care about states that have 500 people in them & besides if QLD grew up & followed VIC & NSW time they wouldn’t have this problem.
Hi Rutzie, excluding a technical glitch at the start, he Twenty20 match last Friday was shown live on GEM and replayed after the flood coverage at 10.30pm on Nine.
Hewitt Vs. Nalbandian tonight. Will it be live in QLD?
Nah, don’t think so. Even with 72 available, Channel 7 wouldn’t broadcast live.
I live in Vic so loved how I could keep watching the dokic match when 7 went to the news – this will make the aus open coverage much better! I also like how they do the split screen and they seem to be showing more results/footage from other courts this year rather than just sticking with the main match.
Time for qld and wa to finally get day light savings – this will at least fix the problem for qld viewers!
If only they did this to all their programming which runs over the advertised time, nothing would ever air on Seven, just 7TWO.
so unfair that viewers in WA always have to miss out. with the digital channels, they could telecast live evening sessions on 7two and then screen a delayed telecast on 7 later on for those who are unable to catch the live showing.
its always a win for viewers in Sydney and Melbourne, but for those viewers outside of these areas, seven couldnt care less. if viewers tuned out, maybe they’d life their game, but as long as people keep watching, they wont do anything about it.
Totally agree with that David
Nothing has changed here In wa when it comes
To live sport
Surely using 7two or mate and show the evening
Matches live into WA so this will
Give us a choice of either watching
It live or waiting for the delayed telecast
On 7.
I am happy that Seven are finally airing matches that went into overtime on 7TWO, but where is the Live night matches? Viewers in QLD, SA, WA and NT are viewing a tennis match later than in the east coast!
Look at the end of the today you can’t please everyone.
Given the time difference between WA and Victoria, Seven should show the women’s singles match live at 4pm WA time. Then show Seven News when the women’s match finishes, before joining the men’s singles match live in progress.
I am fed up of Ch7 delaying sport and then showing the result in their own news breaks.
Do the tv stations not realise we live in a world in which information is instantaneously available from a variety of sources, they are not just it any more. They have the potential to drive themselves into irrelevance, no great loss though.
This is actually a tactic used by TV networks to force recalcitrant states to fix their timezones. There’s no reason why Queensland shouldn’t adopt daylight saving, especially in the south – it’s just their backwards country population holding them back.
And in the case of South Australia, that thirty minute difference is ridiculous. It makes no sense whatsoever. Thirty minutes is such a short period of time, they should just get over it and align themselves with AEST/AEDT.
That will leave only Western Australia with a different timezone. Not much can be done about that, unfortunately,
Why wasn’t their an article about how the twenty20 match last friday was delayed by an hour in Queensland when it could have been shown live on GEM.