We were reporting live from today’s Joint Committee Session on the Future of Sports Broadcasting in Ireland.
The session has now concluded and we have done our best to capture as much of what was said below.
It is far from an ideal format with everything feeling a bit more geared toward occasional grandstanding and the questions more often taking up more time than the answers.
It is democracy though and some of the points raised are now on the public record and will serve to keep sporting administrators and broadcasters on their toes with regard to maintaining the excellent level of sporting coverage which we enjoy in Ireland, a level that is far from common in other jurisdictions.
This report runs long and may in places be raw but MBM coverage can be like that and we felt it was an important service to record what was being said.
16:20
Senator Carrighy is now asking if there is merit in the idea of a ‘Sports Stadium’ style project.
“Contestable funds work well for public service broadcasting and a fund targeted towards this area would work,” said Alan Esslemont.
Virgin Media said they would consider subject to gathering a commercial return.
RTÉ would have a strong preference to focus on live rather than magazine programming, based on audience preference.
Sky Sports has also said that it covers a lot more sports these days on YouTube and through social channels.
16:12
Brendan Griffin is asking the reason why he was asked which County he supported and is suggesting this was used to determine games. Declan McBennett says this is most likely just a standard question for marketing and database reasons.
He is now giving a strong rebuttal of the fact that Kerry football, Clare hurling and Monaghan football were in some way done a disservice. “There is a rationale behind each and every choice.”
Alan Esslemont is asked about greater coverage on TG4 and he responds that they are inclined to build from the ground up, preferring to bid for the Women’s Premier Division in the League of Ireland, rather than international games.
“If we had an extra €2 million this year we would be able to do a lot more.”
16:09
Senator Shane Cassels is returning to a statement from Irish Bookmakers which was released today and which might not yet have been fully considered.
Paul Farrell of Virgin is asked whether the willingness to invest in production was at the heart of the breakdown of their negotiation with the GAA, and he answers that this was part of the discussion but not the only reason in the early stage discussion.
The overall annual footprint of GAA Coverage now runs from the Allianz League in January to the Club Competitions in December, according to Declan McBennett who also strongly defends the rightness of broadcasting the provincial finals.
16:03
Imelda Munster is perhaps the most forensic of the committee members. She is raising the question of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) giving clearance for the broadcast of games in a post-covid environment.
McBennett says that the original clearance was to broadcast outside of Ireland, that the CCPC has been kept appraised of everything that has happened since but that formal clearance has not yet been given.
We will come back to this.
15:58
We are getting very granular over comments that had been made about facilities in County Louth which have been apologised for.
Sky has said they would take in more in subscription than in advertising revenue, and that there is a line between Sky’s investment and the ability of sports rights holders to invest themselves in facilities.
15:52
Declan McBennet rejects the accusation of acting in a cartel manner, of picking games to enhance double charging, and of it being inappropriate to be a Director.
Alan Dillon is asking about the exceptional circumstances that might give rise to RTÉ showing simultaneous games on RTÉ1 and RTÉ2.
RTÉ has the right to request games but the decision is made by the independent CCC Committee.
McBennett defends the idea that RTÉ best serves the audience and the license fee payer by expanding live coverage from 653 hours to over 1,000 hours of live sport.
15:49
Christopher O’Sullivan is asking about coverage of the GAA games. The condensed nature of the GAA Calendar is an area where the GAA and RTÉ might not be aligned according to McBennett. The RTÉ News Channel has been used at times for the overspill of games. There is a contractual obligation to show 31 games which can largely be handled on RTÉ2.
TG4 has welcomed the possibility of showing more Championship games but does not have the funding to get involved at a level that would be fair to the GAA as a rights holder.
Cycling is well covered on TG4 through the Tour de France.
Virgin Media would like to adopt the same shared approach to GAA as in Rugby.
15:44
Marie Sherlock is asking if there is any consideration of expanding the reach of reduced-price access for elderly people. Declan McBennett says that there will be a review at the end of the season and that both parties are willing to listen.
Care homes and cheaper access through GAA Clubs and Commercial premises have proven popular.
In relation to Women’s sports, RTÉ has expanded its coverage and will continue to do so.
There can be improvement in how many games can be broadcast from the League of Ireland.
15:40
In answer to Malcolm Byrne, Alan Esslemont says that TG4 is a publisher broadcaster, meaning the money is distributed broadly across the sector. He does see there being a greater opportunity to expand this model to lead to more free-to-air coverage.
15:37
In answer to Chris Andrews, Declan McBennett is defending RTÉ’s right to be in partnership with GAAGo. He highlights 404 events this year, all included in the free-to-air model, funded by the License. He said he will make the Committee aware of RTÉ’s investment in GAAGo. He has highlighted that LOITV was founded in partnership with RTÉ.
When asked if he would consider more coverage of the League of Ireland and less of the Champions League, he highlights the commitment to supporting the broadcast of Women’s internationals from countries that were otherwise unwilling to invest, and the fact that League of Ireland is well covered.
15:31
All of Virgin Media’s decisions are based on keeping it as a viable commercial enterprise, said Paul Farrell of Virgin Media. Streaming is to be welcomed in terms of increasing diversity.
Our current partnership with RTÉ on the Six Nations and the Rugby World Cup is a strong pointer to the future.
Sporting bodies need to generate revenue but it is also important to maintain visibility. There is evidence of decline in participation when right to the biggest events are placed behind a paywall.
It is important to ensure that sports broadcasting on local radio is not forgotten, says John Purcell. Sports broadcasting is changing rapidly. A situation may arise when what is taken for granted may not continue to be viable, and we need to ensure that policy and planning in relation to sport needs to include everyone.
15:26
The second session with the broadcasters is now live with Declan McBennet of RTÉ, Alan Esslemont of TG4, Mark Carpenter of Sky, John Purcell of Independent Broadcasters of Ireland, and Paul Farrell of Virgin Media.
Sky Ireland has been offering services since the 1990s and currently broadcasts to over 2 million viewers in Ireland, according to Mark Carpenter. It is a good partner to sporting organisations as is evidenced by its multiple long-term partnerships.
Our commitment to live sports means the broadcast of 11 dedicated channels and the development of Now TV.
He has also highlighted the risk to live sport of sports piracy and would encourage stronger policing.
15:21
Mary Ellen Ní Chualáin of TG4 is now speaking on behalf of TG4 referencing the station’s strong commitment to Women’s sport and to Ladies’ Football over more than two decades. She is rightly and naturally addressing the meeting as Gaeilge, and praising the input of independent producers including Sport for Business member Nemeton TV.
Declan McBennett talks of the role that sport has in our identity. It broadcast 653 hours of live sport in 2019, 852 in 2022, and is likely to extend beyond 1,000 hours in 2023.
RTÉ does not have and should not have a monopoly of coverage. It is neither realistic nor feasible that all sport can be shown free-to-air.
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The first session with the Sporting Bodies has concluded and you can read below a minute-by-minute coverage of what was discussed.
Four minutes is a very short period of time and in many cases, there was no time to answer the statements/questions. Nevertheless, there were some elements of interest, with the emphasis very much on the GAA.
15:00
Thomas Gould is wishing the best for the Irish U20 Rugby team and says that more should be done to promote greater diversity for more communities.
He would also like to see more investment in facilities for football, and he wants more hurling on free-to-air, because it is being squeezed between football and rugby.
Danny Healy Rae has arrived late and in concluding the meeting is revisiting the lack of coverage for Kerry and bemoaning the fact that areas of the county have very poor broadband.
He argues that squeezing the big games into a shorter window is not fair to the fans.
“It’s just not good enough, lads.”
14:58
Senator Michael Carrigy is praising the magazine format and is supportive of GAAGo in terms of providing more games and at what he sees as reasonable value compared to the previous Sky subscription.
As a former member of the GAA Ard Chomhairle, he perhaps has a greater sense of the complexity than others.
Four minutes is once again proving very short.
“Ending the inter-county season early allows for more space for club which has been warmly welcomed. We now have more games in less time and that does present challenges. One weekend in early June every county was involved in a football Championship match
14:53
Brendan Griffin has asked if discussions have taken place with regard to the magazine format. “It is at a very early stage but we would be doing the next generation of children a greater service it it could happen.”
Moving back to Tom Ryan then he is asking for a comparison between Kerry against Tyrone in 2021 free-to-air and two weeks ago in the Quarter Final.
He is also wondering if it is right that David Clifford and Kerry have only been shown once.
“There is no quota but it is noted when anomalies arise that they can be looked at going into the mix for the future.”
“The Kerry Tyrone game was viewed by 120,000.”
14:48
Jonathan Hill replied to Senator Shane Cassells that The FAI went to the market in relation to other broadcasting of the league of Ireland. Discussions were held with Sky but that has neither progressed nor come to nothing.
Tom Ryan has said that the split between value of RTÉ and GAAGo is broadly similar to that which was the case between RTÉ and Sky.
14:44
Imelda Munster wanted to check on whether Virgin Media has been approached. Peter McKenna replied that they were but they wanted a ‘ready to go’ solution and were unwilling to enter a production arrangement.
She has also asked about the number of GAAGo viewers.
“The total number of viewers is 1.3 million. Across 42 games that has ranged from as low as 1,500 to over 100,000. The number of games being broadcast behind a paywall is now around 17 percent of the total games, at 50, rather than 52 representing 30 percent in previous agreements.
14:38
Mattie McGrath has been reminded that he has four minutes. So far we have heard that Hawk-Eye’s failure is abysmal and is related to poor broadband, that it is also despicable that there is no cash accepted for people to pay to watch the games, that good people who cut the grass and wash the jerseys are being treated very poorly by the GAA and RTÉ.
Tom Ryan has answered the non-question politely. “We try our best to live in a modern world without leaving our values behind. We have not taken cash at grounds for more than ten years but we do make certain arrangements that we do not publicise. Total ticket sales for the Allianz Leagues was €2 million, of which cash accounted for €15,000”
14:33
Peter Fitzpatrick, also Chair of Louth GAA is returning to the decision-making process on how games are selected and how prices are being set.
Tom Ryan has noted that pricing will be part of an overall review of the first year and that commentary on broadband are also noted.
The GAA earns the same income regardless of who is playing from the broadcast agreement. We have a responsibility to show Provincial Finals and we have an obligation to be fair across codes and different counties.
We have the scope to make changes now that we did not have before.
14:28
The Red Button on the BBC is being used as an example that might be followed to allow selective showing of matches but outside of the paywall by Senator Niall O’Donaghaille.
He then raises the fact that Northern Irish viewers cannot see matches being shown here. Missing out on the fact that the IFA and not the FAI are responsible for rights negotiated through UEFA.
The length of the question though has not allowed time for an answer to be given…
14:24
Alan Dillon has asked about the decision-making process on which games are shown.
Tom Ryan is answering “The GAA’s independent CCC Committee decides based on venues, the integrity of the competition, and other factors before confirming Saturday or Sunday slots.”
“The broadcasters buy packages of rights, typically Sunday on RTÉ and Saturday for GAAGo.”
“They are not picked based on revenue.”
“I understand the perception that this is ‘managed’ but there is an independent process.”
There is an argument from the Deputy that games are being put behind the paywall but it is being ignored that these are additional games rather than ones that would otherwise be shown on RTÉ. And time has run out to answer fully…
14:18
Christopher O’Sullivan recognised that the heat has largely gone out of the anger around certain matches not being shown on RTÉ.
We are into individual stories about a Father In Law being invited over to watch a game, another who suffered with buffering and his own Father who did not have the technology.
We just need to facilitate those who are being excluded.
“We are not deaf to any of those issues.” “There are choices that have to be made and we are showing more games than ever before both through free-to-air and GAAGo.”
14:14
Ciaran Cannon highlighted the importance of GAAGo in his former role as Minister for the Diaspora and for the Irish overseas.
He then asks whether the initial creation has now morphed into more of a money-spinning exercise.
“We kind of tore up the broadcast model during Covid and used GAAGo to deliver games and diversion to the Irish population.
“We learned there was an appetite to stream not only county but club games. we saw the flexibility that it provided and we concluded that the model was better suited for the GAA in the latest media rights cycle.
“The financial benefit from GAAGo in the current year is likely to be around €4 million, with the majority being in the domestic market.”
“We play 400-500 games per year at Inter County with around ten percent of those delivering a financial return.”
14:08
In response to Malcolm Byrne’s question on changing trends…
There are major changes in how young people, in particular, are viewing sport. The current level of revenue from broadcast for rugby is around 25 percent but it is difficult to forecast where that is going. In the GAA it is around 22 percent and this is unlikely to change too much. The FAI is around 20 percent with the majority driven by the Men’s international game and is managed centrally through UEFA.
14:03
We have gone off the broadcast theme already with Chris Andrews TD asking about the current protest for equality. The GAA’s Tom Ryan has reiterated that it is there to support the journey towards equality and that the rights of male players can provide a pathway, but that the LGFA and the Camogie Associations are the lead on this for now.
13:58
The IRFU Chief Commercial Officer has updated on the IRFU broadcasting arrangements.
The IRFU, together with its counterpart unions in England, France, Italy, Scotland, and Wales, form the “Six Nations”. Six Nations Rugby Limited (‘SNRL’) is an Irish company formed by the Six Nations to organise the annual men’s and women’s senior and Under 20’s rugby tournaments known as the Six Nations Championships and to sell the broadcasting rights to all matches played as part of the Championships. SNRL also sell the broadcast rights to the Autumn Internationals which is when we host the Southern Hemisphere teams here in Dublin every November.
SNRL’s shareholders are the IRFU and the other five unions on the Six Nations Council and CVC a private equity company which has recently come on board. The IRFU are also shareholders in EPCR, the entity that organises the European Rugby and we are also a founding member of Celtic Rugby DAC the entity that organises the United Rugby Championship. The provinces play in these tournaments and like the 6 Nations, the broadcast rights are sold centrally on behalf of all the participating teams.
It is critical to note, that the balance always exists between promoting our games to as wide an audience as possible, while generating the necessary revenues to fund and grow our sport at all levels. Broadcasting income remains the most important revenue stream that we have as it underpins the very structure of our sport. Despite that fact that all professional rugby rights with Irish Teams are now sold centrally, the IRFU has great relationships with the likes of RTE, Virgin Media, TG4 and BBC NI and we look forward to continuing those relationships.
13:53
Jonathan Hill of the FAI says that it is important to balance the right level of visibility with the need to generate commercial income.
RTÉ has the right to broadcast games in Ireland as part of a collective arrangement managed by UEFA.
The FAI has been creative in terms of developing LOITV which has proven popular with fans, allowing for the broadcast of every game in the men’s and women’s League of Ireland.
13:51
Tom Ryan of the GAA has outlined the purpose of the Association and the changing view of how the games are broadcast. It has a strong track record in adapting to technology and changing trends.
GAAGo was established to provide own content and deliver to niche audiences.
Covid changed everything and made the streaming of all games a requirement. In the new media rights cycle GAAGo expanded.
“The expectation that every game should be on free-to-air television is neither realistic or in our plans.”
13:47
Mary O’Connor says that the Federation recognises that sports broadcasting is market driven and dominated by Gaelic Games, Rugby, Football and Horse Racing, but believes there is a great opportunity to open up to other sports.
It would like to see a new magazine-style programme to promote other sports, most notably swimming, running and cycling.
It also proposes that a separate funding stream be made available for the broadcast of women’s niche and other sports.
13:44
Paul McDermott outlined the importance of encouraging diversity in broadcasting, protecting major events for free-to-air television, and promoting enhanced levels of activity across the broad population.
Paid streaming services from the FAI, Irish Rugby, and the GAA is an innovation that can lead to an opportunity for other sports to learn from and increase the visibility and profile of other sports.
13:39
The session has been opened by Chair Niamh Smyth who has said that each organisation will have three minutes to make an opening statement and then each committee members will have four minutes in which to ask questions.
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There will be two sessions, the first for sporting bodies and the second for broadcasters with the subject to hand being the future of sports broadcasting in Ireland.
The GAA will be represented by Director General Tom Ryan and Commercial Director Peter McKenna; the FAI by CEO Jonathan Hill and League of Ireland Director Mark Scanlon; and the IRFU by CEO Kevin Potts and Commercial Director Padraig Power.
Sport Ireland is represented by Paul McDermott and Fergus Hannigan and the Federation of Irish Sport by CEO Mary O’Connor
The second session will see representatives of RTÉ, Virgin Media, TG4, Sky Ireland and the independent sector brought before the committee.
The Committee is chaired by Niamh Smyth with former Mayo footballer Alan Dillon as Deputy. Former Minister of State for Sport Brendan Griffin will be present along with fellow TD’s Chris Andrews, Ciaran Cannon, Peter Fitzpatrick, Mattie McGrath, Imelda Munster and Christopher O’Sullivan, and Senators Malcolm Byrne, Micheál Carrigy, Shane Cassells, Annie Hoey and Fintan Warfield.
READ OUR PREVIEW OF WHAT THE DAY MIGHT HOLD FROM THIS MORNING
