BT to Diversify Mobile TV Market after Landing Bumper Premiership Deal
The landscape of British broadcasting has shifted dramatically after BT pulled a huge surprise by securing Premiership televised football rights for £738 million.
While English Premiership clubs were busy rejoicing over the capture of a bumper new 3 Billion TV rights deal from Sky and BT, mobile TV distributers were speculating if the deal would provide a shot in the arm for the lagging UK market.
BT have been investing in their broadband capabilities for a number of years and now look to grab a stranglehold on an open broadband market by launching their own sports channel and offering Premiership games across various platforms.
With near unrivalled broadband speeds BT could be set to push ahead with an innovative mobile TV service using Premiership games, as Sky have yet to monopolise the mobile market like it has with its TV package.
Premier League CEO Richard Scudamore stated the development of new platforms for distribution of Premiership football would be fundamental in the Premier Leagues continued reign as the most viewed league in the world:
Once internet rights and overseas sales, which brought in £1.4bn under the current deals, are taken into account, the total is likely to easily top £5bn over three years.”
The deal will take effect from the start of the 2013/2014 season.
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