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Report: Nine in late run for Cricket rights

Media reports suggest Cricket Australia has cooled on re-entering a new arrangement with Seven.

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Media reports claim Nine has emerged as a shock 11th hour contender to reclaim cricket’s TV rights.

The Daily Telegraph reports CA has cooled on re-entering a new arrangement with Seven, which is currently suing them in the Federal Court.

There are also concerns around Paramount’s performance despite a reported offer of $1.5 billion. But News Corp articles continue to downplay Paramount’s prospects despite its good track record with the BBL. Commentary that the Melbourne Cup has declined ignore that it has done so for a decade on two broadcasters.

Cricket Australia bosses have been working in the background to see if a partnership can be formed between Nine, FOX Sports and News Corp.

To partner with Nine would mean Cricket Australia would have to be comfortable with the Australian Open being directly promoted against cricket season, possibly with Big Bash games on 9GEM.

However The Australian suggests Nine would likely have rights to Test matches, and Foxtel some or most of the Big Bash and limited-overs international games.

But there are also complications with how Nine, FOX Sports and News Corp would resolve the competing interests of 9Now, Stan, Kayo and their respective newspaper groups.

For Seven to lose the Cricket would be a major upheaval given it would have to schedule entertainment over the summer period.

Cricket Australia have indicated they would like to have a deal done by Christmas, but are not committed to a deadline.

18 Responses

  1. If i were advising Paramount, I would recommend they walk away. It appears CA want anything other than Paramount so why would you want it in the end. I know Ten is in need of a sport, but they have proven summer can work with investment in new reality ideas and no sport.
    Let CA, who called you bottom feeders the last time, come begging when they can’t get a deal anywhere else.
    If Fox and News Corp are so important to your deal, just give them what they want and auction off the rest.
    I honestly think that Paramount will do more than CA predicts with its ambition to take on more sports the next time rights are up, so for gods sake, throw them a bone and move on. Were you concerned when 7 took over? look how things went when the top rating network took over…

  2. Why would Nine want to share the rights with Foxtel, when they can get all the rights and show it on Stan Sports? As long as whoever gets the rights, they have an ad free option on Foxtel/Stan/P+, I’ll be happy.

    2. Because 9 can’t afford the rights on their own. 9 is struggling to pay $80million a year CA is asking. Over 7 years that’s 560m. The 10 bid is a billion larger. Really.

    1. SMH reporting IOC have awarded the rights to next 3 Olympics to Nine entertainment. If seven loses the cricket and the Olympics, that would be something. Bruce McAvaney must be beside himself.

  4. What l’ll ideally like to see – 9 have the test matches and ODIs/T20s. Both on FTA and on 9Now for free. Foxtel can simulcast tests (like now) and simulcast ODIs/T20s too (so give up exclusive rights). And BBL can be exclusive to Fox and Kayo as is was when BBL started. All women’s games on 9, 9Now, Foxtel and Kayo.

    What will happen – Either 10 wins the rights, tests and some bbl will be on FTA and ODIs/T20s/remaining BBL on Paramount+ (another service to subscribe to) OR
    9 will have tests/BBL (so swap 7 for 9 in current deal) and Foxtel ODIs/T20s/simulcast tests and BBL.

    Either way I really hope the paytv aspect (which will be in one form or another) remains Kayo/Foxtel as most have it for F1/AFL/NRL and not on Stan Sports and obviously never on Paramount+

  5. Nine can easily fit the test matches in around the Australian Open, CA will be prepared to let Foxtel have the White Ball matches as they have highest margins and CA would be happy for them to continue to pay a lot for them. that Seven never wanted the cricket, spent as little a possible on it, have been publicly slagging of CA and the cricket for two years, rejected a mediated settlement and is now taking CA to court to get out of the contract they signed and win compensation, it not surprising that their relationship with CA isn’t very good. And as Paramount is in financial trouble, screwed up soccer coverage then forced the APL and clubs to accept reduced payments you can see why $1.5b they want for exclusive rights for everything may not be all it’s cracked up to be.

  6. I’d like to see cricket back on its spiritual home on 9. Kerry Packer has a strong passion in cricket. After Packer died in late 2005, things started to fall apart slowly. However, the commentary became very unbearable in the final few years of 9’s cricket. THe loss of Greig and Benaud have left a massive void in the commentary team. Callers like Slats, Warne, JB, Tubs, Heals, Pup continue talking non-cricket stuff including pizza, stuff about grandparents, cracking old dad jokes. Chappell used to be a good commentator but he started to feel very emotional with every passing year. This was enough for me to turn my TV off.
    If 9 gets the cricket back, would like to see Roz Kelly hosting the coverage. Roz Kelly is preferable than Mark Nicholas and has a lot of charisma and passion. Since Mark NIcholas departed 9 in 2018, he has worked for SuperSport in South Africa.

    1. … some would argue that the “spiritual home” of cricket is the ABC … I was directing cricket there in 1972, long before Strop persuaded Big Kezza that there was a quid to be made from it …

  8. Yes I saw these articles also David. Can’t help but wonder whether this is a counter by CA to sevens poo-pooing the CA product and effectively calling seven’s bluff….if you don’t want a major summer sport, we have options, you don’t. All else being equal (and it never is), CA would prefer seven to nine. But if the cricket does go to nine or ten, it will be really interesting for seven to see just how important (or not) summer sport is. It is a lot of money which could be spent on dramas and comedies and ten have shown you can draw a summer crowd with the new programming.

    1. Sport can bring in large audiences that doesn’t watch much TV otherwise and the tennis is perfectly placed to promote their ratings season lineups. FTA networks make and broadcast the least drama/dramedies they can, and don’t bother at all with comedy, and they leave taxpayers and global producers on the hook for all the risk. If Seven had an extra $750m they would pay down debt, return it to sharehold and invest in content for 7plus, which although thin margin business may have a future.

      1. Pertinax, I agree that is the conventional thinking….summer sport sets a network up for promoting the key shows for the upcoming year and that the Australian Open tennis is perfectly timed for this. My point is simply that seven, through circumstances, may well have no choice but to test conventional thinking. And if the lack of a summer sport doesn’t hurt them so much, then suddenly spending so much on summer sports coverage is challenged. A lot of what ifs and in any event, it’s a few years away. Sevens financial position (when I last reviewed a few months back) has improved quite a bit from its worst (I think 3-4 years back) with a big chunk of a growing advertising pie – not forgetting that ten and nine have benefited from a financial restructure and thus far, seven has avoided this. With interest rates increasing (but seven would have locked in lower rates while they could for a lot of their debt I presume), they may pay of some but keep the rest for Olympics and Comm games…

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