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meomy

Freeview ending - Racing coverage to cease

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We notice there is no mention of Racing on Freeview ending in the Harness section of this forum.

 

You may like to jump into Gallops section and have a read for your own benefit/ loss

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Oiy op meomy, do you know if that has also meant the loss of The Boxseat cant seem to catch up with it anymore? actually if it has, I've decided I'm quite p...p...p umm hang on a minute 'perturbed' about it!!!!! (ah shaddup you lot I'm tryin to mind me manners) I got sky but when I go to me mates to watch the races n av a couple, they only got freeview, uh man now I'll be forced to hav em all here all the time :D oh geez such is life hic..........

 

 

Cheers Iraklis

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Remember Des Coppins has an session this Sunday about this issue.

 

Media from January 14

 

Cost-cutting scratches Trackside on Freeview

By Steve Deane

5:30 AM Tuesday Jan 14, 2014

 

 

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11185824

 

Media from February 4

 

Racing: Scratching Freeview justified says NZRB

By Anendra Singh

5:00 AM Tuesday Feb 4, 2014 2 comments
3fa14661fe83f457e4d01d0403f6568fec601e01Glen Patrick

The response from a "majority" of Trackside customers has prompted the New Zealand Racing Board to broadcast with Sky TV from April.

"We've had a lot of feedback from customers [from a survey] who feel that Trackside often crosses to another meeting without enough detailed lead-in or post-race analysis and that Trackside and TAB TV duplicate content," said Glen Patrick, the executive general manager for TAB, who announced last month Trackside will switch to Sky from April 14.

Patrick was responding to questions from Hawke's Bay Today after a rash of text messages and letters to the newspaper from disgruntled punters.

Arthur Bott, of Hastings, wrote a letter to the editor condemning the TAB for its history of providing a "very poor service" to all the small pubs and club outlets serving the betting public.

"Often the profits do not cover the cost of staff and administration time it takes.

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"In my opinion, the TAB has shot itself in both feet with this ridiculous change of policy. Will all the telephone account punters be happy to place their bets if they can't see the races on Freeview in their homes? I can't believe they will," Bott wrote.

Asked if it was a matter of profit versus loyalty to punters, Patrick said while Freeview was free to the consumer, the costs associated with broadcasting on the service were substantial.

"The number of viewers using this service does not make economic sense going forward. Our research shows 18 per cent of our customer base use Freeview [but] 79 per cent already view our channels through Sky in their homes."

Patrick said the board had received "significant support" throughout the country as well as some complaints, "which was to be expected".

"While we have received other customer complaints from other areas of the country to date, we have had 50 per cent more sign-ups on to Sky versus the number of customer complaints - showing that our research and the offer put to our customers has helped to facilitate the transition."

It had no plans to provide a daily wrap on any other free-to-air TV services but, she said, the Melbourne Cup and a range of New Zealand's premier racing events would still be available live free on Prime.

They include the New Zealand Trotting Cup, New Zealand Galloping Cup, Wellington Cup, Karaka Millions, Waikato Sprint, Auckland Cup, Harness Jewels and the Great Northern Steeplechase.

Patrick said the board was listening to customers.

"It should be noted that the additional revenue received from switching across to Sky TV will enable us to invest in our programming and take on board the feedback customers have been giving us for many years.

"If we remain on Freeview we will not be able to make these enhancements."

He said it also would help the board increase its financial return to the racing industry.

"We return all our profit to the industry, yet it faces significant challenges.

"To safeguard the industry and ensure customers have quality racing to watch, we need to act.

"We have developed a strategy to address this and the move to Sky TV is a key part of that."

Patrick said punters would also support the industry by betting through the TAB.

Trackside is now broadcast on the Freeview and Sky TV platforms but it is understood a desire to save money on broadcasting fees paid to Freeview and Kordia was behind the board's decision.

Patrick said while saving money on broadcasting fees was a factor, a plan to split content across two channels - which will be rebranded Trackside 1 and Trackside 2 - could be achieved if they were broadcast on the same platform.

"It is a better commercial deal," he said.

- HAWKES BAY TODAY

By Anendra Singh

 

 

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Well said by  Arthur Bott in the above article.

 

Arthur Bott, of Hastings, wrote a letter to the editor condemning the TAB for its history of providing a "very poor service" to all the small pubs and club outlets serving the betting public.

"Often the profits do not cover the cost of staff and administration time it takes.

"In my opinion, the TAB has shot itself in both feet with this ridiculous change of policy. Will all the telephone account punters be happy to place their bets if they can't see the races on Freeview in their homes? I can't believe they will," Bott wrote.

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     I was looking at gatting an extra decoder from sky for $25 but am now  looking at  cutting my nz betting down to nz cup, and possibilly  a couple of major harness meetings  and thats all. and doing away with tab accounts all together... as i have opened a tab account in australia, had it going since christmas and  seem to be doing okay with it... i have lost interset/passion in racing in nz  and really on the verge of just giving it away altogether... tab doing away with freeview coverage a prime factor in my decision.

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I think no where else in the world has free to air racing so why should NZ have that benefit to the financial detriment of all racing.  In Australia  they have two racing channels and you need to subscribe to them both if you want to get coverage of all the racing. You could hardly say their racing has suffered by having to pay to view.  For those who are too miserly to afford sky, and dont forget all the other sport we have to pay to view for as well, you can access the free watch and bet site that comes with the TAB website.  I use it frequently while my wife watches her cooking shows.   :D

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Probably not too many places in the world where racing is disappearing faster down a sink whole than NZ .   If as the head of NZTR says today  they want to grow their  future client base how can that be achieved by limiting people's opportunity to view the  product  ?   Didn't someone on here say a few weeks back that in Australia they have decided to put a lot of their racing free to air now,  as they said they have now  recognised the danger of not doing so   ? .  If that is true, they are right or we are and I would bet a hot dog to a boiled potato on it not being us. 

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I think no where else in the world has free to air racing so why should NZ have that benefit to the financial detriment of all racing.  In Australia  they have two racing channels and you need to subscribe to them both if you want to get coverage of all the racing. You could hardly say their racing has suffered by having to pay to view.  For those who are too miserly to afford sky, and dont forget all the other sport we have to pay to view for as well, you can access the free watch and bet site that comes with the TAB website.  I use it frequently while my wife watches her cooking shows.   :D

 

" I think no where else in the world has free to air racing so why should NZ have that benefit to the financial detriment of all racing."

 

Harewood..could you explain what the detriment is please, as this makes no sense to me so that i do not understand the statement.

"Thanks"

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I would have thought provision of the product "Free Trackside" would have been a cost of doing business that would have been factored into the takeouts anyway.

Real simple this issue - provide the product - lets say Trackside - market the sellable items (betting) through the product to a captive audience and enmtice them through marketing of the sellable items etc etc etc ..........

Or am I missing a link somewhere.

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Once upon a time we all had free access to all sports, tennis, racing, rugby, cricket etc on Public operated/ owned television, including after the Broadcasting fee on those channels was removed.

 

Youngsters were also more inclined & inspired to go out and play sports as a result of seeing their hero's playing.

 

Some have even gone on to have successful sporting careers as a result, including in the Racing industry.

 

There are still parts of New Zealand where people are unable to access a decent signal to watch TV or access the internet.

 

I think no where else in the world has free to air racing so why should NZ have that benefit to the financial detriment of all racing.  In Australia  they have two racing channels and you need to subscribe to them both if you want to get coverage of all the racing. You could hardly say their racing has suffered by having to pay to view.  For those who are too miserly to afford sky, and dont forget all the other sport we have to pay to view for as well, you can access the free watch and bet site that comes with the TAB website.  I use it frequently while my wife watches her cooking shows.   :D

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Once upon a time  we had free milk delivered and the pubs shut at 6pm.  Come on Meomy things are always changing and progress being made. Dont live back in the past in 'the good old days"  The days of all freeview sport is limited never mind racing. That is the way of the sports industry dollar. Just think back to the Kerry Packer days of cricket and how that was rubbished and was going to fail.  Well it didnt and is now one of the richest team sporting events world wide with the money being made through pay for view TV.  Embrace the future and get sky and help the industry save millions that can be better spent either on better stakes which all owners are crying out for and better marketing to encourage more people to participate in what we love.  

There are still parts of NZ that cannot access TV and therefor freeview TV  so Sky and pay for view will be the way to got for those people.

And no Australia is not putting racing back on freeview, why do they need to when they get huge crowds going to the races and increasing stakes. They do the same as NZ as in free viewing on big cup days and the other night two hours of the interdom heats.

How many Aussies horse do we see coming the NZ regularly as opposed to the other way, very few.  That is because the stakes are much bigger over the Tasman, so do we want to have freeview  racing for a few or pay for view and try and help the industry grow with better marketing and bigger stakes.  Would be interested on a trainers viewpoint on this.

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Racing is different from most "sports".    It is gambling orientated and the majority of patrons couldn't give a rats for the race.    Look up the results on the internet - win/lose - then on to the next race.     If it were a spectator sport then why could you throw a grenade in the public stand at most courses and not get one hit!    

 

As an aside a suggestion to the churches who always saying congregations are dwindling - put a couple of TAB machines in the foyer! ;)    

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Are you looking forward to Freeview TV arriving in Australia next month?

 

 

Not long now til it happens.

 

 

Do you know what channels you are getting?

 

 

 

Hope you don't get landed with PC gone mad TV channels or 3 shopping channels that are a waste of money & bandwidths.

 

Further updates what is been happening in NZ is over in the Freeview Gone & other related threads over in Thoroughbred forum.

 

UNBELIEVABLE - you guys got coverage for free !!!!!!!!!!!

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Tabcorp breaks race streaming impasse with TVN

 

 

http://www.smh.com.au/business/media-and-marketing/tabcorp-breaks-race-streaming-impasse-with-tvn-20140407-368p8.html

 

Date April 7, 2014
  •  
 

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/business/media-and-marketing/tabcorp-breaks-race-streaming-impasse-with-tvn-20140407-368p8.html#ixzz31MlzDN2v

 

Jessica Gardner and John Stensholt

Tbcorp has secured a breakthrough in drawn-out broadcast negotiations with racing industry-owned ThoroughVision (TVN), allowing it to show metropolitan races on its website and smartphone apps for the rest of the Sydney autumn carnival.

 

The two parties have been rolling over an old agreement, which allows for horse racing to be broadcast into pubs and clubs via Tabcorp's Sky Racing, since the start of 2013.

 

The delay was initially blamed on TVN's management turmoil, however the September appointment of chief executive Bruce Mann has yet to break the impasse.

 

But late on Friday the groups agreed that Tabcorp could show Sydney and Melbourne races on its digital channels until the end of May. In return, Tabcorp will allow NSW regional races to be shown on TVN's digital assets.

 

Tabcorp's managing director, media and international, Brendan Parnell, said he hoped the broader deal would be struck before the digital agreement ended. "It's good for the customer and good for wagering, which funds racing," he said. "It hopefully bodes well for the broader negotiations."

 

Under the old deal Sky paid about $40 million annually for rights. It has been suggested a new deal could be worth more than $50 million annually.

 

Pushing out digital vision could spur wagering on The Championships, a new carnival that NSW Racing hopes will one day rival Melbourne's spring carnival.

 

Tabcorp expects the two days of racing beginning this Saturday will bring in about $140 million in bets. Melbourne Cup race days bring in about $200 million. "One would think [customers would] stay for longer on the TAB website or app and hopefully they'll be wagering more," he said.

 

Mr Parnell would not say if Tabcorp wanted the digital rights exclusively in future. But Mr Mann said the broadcaster wants to distribute the digital vision widely, including potentially to online-only bookmakers. "This deal is just for a point in time," he said. "We remain committed to wanting to get our vision out as broadly as possible."

 

Mr Mann said the latest deal was a "test case" to value the digital rights. "Wagering turnover is a crucial part of the negotiations and if this is a way of helping drive that then we are very happy to help out," he said. "It's a short-term concession for a long-term gain."

 

 

 

 

 

 

Probably not too many places in the world where racing is disappearing faster down a sink whole than NZ .   If as the head of NZTR says today  they want to grow their  future client base how can that be achieved by limiting people's opportunity to view the  product  ?   Didn't someone on here say a few weeks back that in Australia they have decided to put a lot of their racing free to air now,  as they said they have now  recognised the danger of not doing so   ? .  If that is true, they are right or we are and I would bet a hot dog to a boiled potato on it not being us. 

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Are you looking forward to Freeview TV arriving in Australia next month?

 

 

Not long now til it happens.

 

 

Do you know what channels you are getting?

 

 

 

Hope you don't get landed with PC gone mad TV channels or 3 shopping channels that are a waste of money & bandwidths.

 

Further updates what is been happening in NZ is over in the Freeview Gone & other related threads over in Thoroughbred forum.

 

Sorry it has taken me so long to reply.  

I was only talking about harness not being free in Oz

 

Despite what Harewood may have said - we have been getting all the bigger Saturday gallops meetings on free Tv for a while now. More than half the Saturdays of the year you will find a version of payTVs TVN on our free Ch7 station's second channel 7TWO.  If it is a really big feature meeting in Sydney or Melbourne it is actually on their main Ch7 station.  I reckon they would have done a deal for just about every metro gallops meeting if they were not so committed to AFL football.  As for harness racing - free Ch9/WIN showed the inter and that hour is the sum total of free harness for the year in Oz

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