TV new deal?

[Pirates Of Poole]

I have read somewhere a new tv deal is due at the end of August? Has anyone else heard this?

Will sky want to get back involved again? ITV 4 to cover some meetings?

We are at the crossroads in this country, more Tv money and correctly invested could we finally see the good times start to return to British speedway? 

Edited July 21, 2019 by Pirates Of Poole

[mikebv]

The Comedy Channel may be interested? 

[moxey63]

I have the meeting from Russia on in the background. Thank go I don't have to keep putting 50p in the electric - I'd be skint by now. It has gone on for too long. I doubt very much that youngsters will put up with such drawn out events. Like watching the Eurovision - and, yes, we don't have a chance in this either. 

 

[The White Knight]

Perhaps if a terrestrial Channel would take Speedway, it would get more exposure.

I won't hold my breath.

#Just saying......................................

[comet49]

Highlights from a BT meeting would be a start.  I thought I'd seen on here that BT were doing next year though.

[Fortythirtyeight]

There's no new TV deal being offered by BT or Sky.

The BSPA are seeking ways of possibly ' streaming ' matches or possibly having a ' highlights ' programme as part of a combined Motor Sports programme on one of the minor subscription channels but it's early days and current viewing figures are about one third of the Sky days so don't think any major station will be cueing for speedway.

[Mike.Butler]

they will be more likely to cue for bar billiards...

[DSC67]

12 minutes ago, Mike.Butler said:

they will be more likely to cue for bar billiards...

Bar Billiards ! Is Indoor League with Fred Trueman making a comeback ?

[steve roberts]

7 hours ago, DSC67 said:

Bar Billiards ! Is Indoor League with Fred Trueman making a comeback ?

...with, of course, the support of speedway's own Dave Lanning!

[W9 Lion]

12 hours ago, Fortythirtyeight said:

There's no new TV deal being offered by BT or Sky.

The BSPA are seeking ways of possibly ' streaming ' matches or possibly having a ' highlights ' programme as part of a combined Motor Sports programme on one of the minor subscription channels but it's early days and current viewing figures are about one third of the Sky days so don't think any major station will be cueing for speedway.

Its not only the net viewers (watching live + time shift) that is the issue. The demographics are terrible for potential "big brand advertisers" We are all to old, to working class, to poor and to retired. Its not an attractive combination for advertising agencies to take a punt on for their clients.

[HGould]

Can't see anything notable in a new deal.

I fear it will dilute from BT to a smaller channel / less income.

Presentation on BT is awful, time for Pearson and Tatum to be shown the door and the bloody awful Natalie.

To think we used to have Lanno and good race readers like Millard and others. Suzi Perry and Sophie Blake were on a different planet to Quirke and that Kiri woman.

Streaming will just push more a way to social media. 

Needs an innovator and innovation and completely new Presentation Team and Presenters. I would retain Scott Nicholls, have him with Mrs Nicholls and other than that start again!

 

[moxey63]

The SKY coverage during the first 10 years at least should have put speedway on a sound footing. Had real business people been running the sport, no doubt it would have done.

For two-to-three years from 1999 there were real signs speedway was on the up. Crowds seemed to be improving and SKY really did recognise viewing figures were good for its network of channels. We had our faces painted and kids were let in for a quid on the evening SKY rolled up for a live broadcast. There did seem to be a hint of proper promoting by those who had lazily worn the tag for yonks beforehand.

But it didn't really last. It drifted into being taken for granted, speedway being on TV every week, and sometimes twice. I felt the sport - promoters and fans - thought SKY and the influx of cash would always be there. We even began having long faces when certain matches weren't on SKY, despite all they had done for us. Fans began getting picky when commentators were pronouncing riders' names wrong, or if certain teams featured more than theirs.

That afternoon SKY had its cameras set up for the Riders' Championship at Coventry, when the promoter was scrambling on the floor looking for the dummy he'd just spat out, that was the final nail for SKY. They had so many rained-off meetings towards the end, I believe they decided to cut their loses. They were a professional broadcasting company working within an amateur sport. They couldn't drag it up to their level. For example, how many times did live matches overrun?

BT have only half-heartedly accepted it, but we should be thankful for small mercies and not start bickering of who's doing a bad job and who you'd like to see on the panel.

I often look at some of the dross SKY are covering during the summer months and cannot believe how the sport messed up its opportunity and is no longer featured. As a fan, I don't really know the ins and outs. But I do recall the amount of money SKY used to shell out setting up all the gear, and then the match was washed out. They aren't a charity and won't put up with it. BT also.

I look at speedway, 20 years after SKY could have saved it, and see a dangerous shortage of riders with clubs having to share them, like the last cigarette being passed around by kids behind the bike sheds. I see clubs going weeks without a match in the height of summer, which will surely mean some fans will simply get out of the habit and get used to the cash in their pockets.

Meanwhile, fans are expected to tune in to the GPs and see many of the riders (or their type) who put two fingers up at Britain and merely used it like a Tom Cat when the female was in season. Fans are expected to turn up trackside and support riders in their team who aren't even their riders. It's like visiting someone in hospital you don't know and wishing them to get better. It's not someone you know and love. In fact, you ask yourself why bother turning up at the bedside every week to wish someone you don't know get better.   

Looking at British speedway right now, I see remnants of what might have been, ghosts of live matches on SKY and all the missed opportunities.

That could have been the sport's saviour. It should have. But look at it now.

How many lives does it have remaining for British speedway to mess up?

   

 

 

 

Edited July 23, 2019 by moxey63

[IainB]

43 minutes ago, moxey63 said:

The SKY coverage during the first 10 years at least should have put speedway on a sound footing. Had real business people been running the sport, no doubt it would have done.

For two-to-three years from 1999 there were real signs speedway was on the up. Crowds seemed to be improving and SKY really did recognise viewing figures were good for its network of channels. We had our faces painted and kids were let in for a quid on the evening SKY rolled up for a live broadcast. There did seem to be a hint of proper promoting by those who had lazily worn the tag for yonks beforehand.

But it didn't really last. It drifted into being taken for granted, speedway being on TV every week, and sometimes twice. I felt the sport - promoters and fans - thought SKY and the influx of cash would always be there. We even began having long faces when certain matches weren't on SKY, despite all they had done for us. Fans began getting picky when commentators were pronouncing riders' names wrong, or if certain teams featured more than theirs.

That afternoon SKY had its cameras set up for the Riders' Championship at Coventry, when the promoter was scrambling on the floor looking for the dummy he'd just spat out, that was the final nail for SKY. They had so many rained-off meetings towards the end, I believe they decided to cut their loses. They were a professional broadcasting company working within an amateur sport. They couldn't drag it up to their level. For example, how many times did live matches overrun?

BT have only half-heartedly accepted it, but we should be thankful for small mercies and not start bickering of who's doing a bad job and who you'd like to see on the panel.

I often look at some of the dross SKY are covering during the summer months and cannot believe how SKY messed up its opportunity and no longer featured. As a fan, I don't really know the ins and outs. But I do recall the amount of money SKY used to shell out setting up all the gear, and then the match was washed out. They aren't a charity and won't put up with it. BT also.

I look at speedway, 20 years after SKY could have saved it, and see a dangerous shortage of riders with clubs having to share them, like the last cigarette being passed around by kids behind the bike sheds. I see clubs going weeks without a match in the height of summer, which will surely mean some fans will simply get out of the habit and get used to the cash in their pockets.

Meanwhile, fans are expected to tune in to the GPs and see many of the riders (or their type) who put two fingers up at Britain and merely used it like a Tom Cat when the female was in season. Fans are expected to turn up trackside and support riders in their team who aren't even their riders. It's like visiting someone in hospital you don't know and wishing them to get better. It's not someone you know and love. In fact, you ask yourself why bother turning up at the bedside every week to wish someone you don't know get better.   

Looking at British speedway right now, I see remnants of what might have been, ghosts of live matches on SKY and all the missed opportunities.

That could have been the sport's saviour. It should have. But look at it now.

How many lives does it have remaining for British speedway to mess up?

   

 

 

 

I've been looking at a lot of the old sky matches recently, from when they first started televising it and it shocked me how much the crowds had fallen off in the last 20 years. Looking back then the matches seemed to have a carnival atmosphere and the coverage was quite innovative with the drive thru studio... sadly it looks like the BSPA blew it

[DEEG]

Hate to be a prophet of doom but the chances of my employer ITV picking up speedway is somewhere around zero and down from there. For a lot of media the advertising cake is smaller than ever so sports and programmes that generate the most commercial revenue though sponsorship and audience figures will always be top of the pile for big players like ITV.

Much as it pains me to say it speedway no longer falls into that category. The cost of covering a meeting properly means it's not worthwhile. Interestingly when I mentioned speedway to the big cheeses last time the TV deal was on the table the reaction was they'd be happy to talk but no one from the sport had been in contact...that says it all really. That chance is unlikely to come again anytime soon. Add in the numerous other issues with the sport that have been debated for years on here and to be frank it's lucky it's on TV at all.

Personally having grown up following Exeter home and away and speedway being a staple on World of Sport I get no pleasure from writing this.  If BT do drop out I think the best bet in the current market for speedway will be a small motor sports channel taking a magazine style programme produced by an independent company.

In the meantime I'll carry on enjoying the sport at my local tracks and keep fingers crossed that somehow speedway will sort itself out and become mainstream again...well you have to dream!

Deeg

 

[IainB]

6 minutes ago, DEEG said:

Hate to be a prophet of doom but the chances of my employer ITV picking up speedway is somewhere around zero and down from there. For a lot of media the advertising cake is smaller than ever so sports and programmes that generate the most commercial revenue though sponsorship and audience figures will always be top of the pile for big players like ITV.

Much as it pains me to say it speedway no longer falls into that category. The cost of covering a meeting properly means it's not worthwhile. Interestingly when I mentioned speedway to the big cheeses last time the TV deal was on the table the reaction was they'd be happy to talk but no one from the sport had been in contact...that says it all really. That chance is unlikely to come again anytime soon. Add in the numerous other issues with the sport that have been debated for years on here and to be frank it's lucky it's on TV at all.

Personally having grown up following Exeter home and away and speedway being a staple on World of Sport I get no pleasure from writing this.  If BT do drop out I think the best bet in the current market for speedway will be a small motor sports channel taking a magazine style programme produced by an independent company.

In the meantime I'll carry on enjoying the sport at my local tracks and keep fingers crossed that somehow speedway will sort itself out and become mainstream again...well you have to dream!

Deeg

 

What about those Michael Parkinson and Alan Titchmarsh adverts about funeral planning... there's a whole captive audience sat there waiting to watch those adverts 

[moxey63]

Two things that came from SKY's coverage which, I feel, damaged the sport: Golden Doubles and Play-Offs.

[IainB]

21 minutes ago, moxey63 said:

Two things that came from SKY's coverage which, I feel, damaged the sport: Golden Doubles and Play-Offs.

I think Golden Doubles were more of a cost saving exercise, as for Play-Offs, that's the price you pay for having TV coverage, only Football has the financial clout to be able to say no to Play Offs

[Barry The Cat]

2 hours ago, moxey63 said:

The SKY coverage during the first 10 years at least should have put speedway on a sound footing. Had real business people been running the sport, no doubt it would have done.

For two-to-three years from 1999 there were real signs speedway was on the up. Crowds seemed to be improving and SKY really did recognise viewing figures were good for its network of channels. We had our faces painted and kids were let in for a quid on the evening SKY rolled up for a live broadcast. There did seem to be a hint of proper promoting by those who had lazily worn the tag for yonks beforehand.

But it didn't really last. It drifted into being taken for granted, speedway being on TV every week, and sometimes twice. I felt the sport - promoters and fans - thought SKY and the influx of cash would always be there. We even began having long faces when certain matches weren't on SKY, despite all they had done for us. Fans began getting picky when commentators were pronouncing riders' names wrong, or if certain teams featured more than theirs.

That afternoon SKY had its cameras set up for the Riders' Championship at Coventry, when the promoter was scrambling on the floor looking for the dummy he'd just spat out, that was the final nail for SKY. They had so many rained-off meetings towards the end, I believe they decided to cut their loses. They were a professional broadcasting company working within an amateur sport. They couldn't drag it up to their level. For example, how many times did live matches overrun?

BT have only half-heartedly accepted it, but we should be thankful for small mercies and not start bickering of who's doing a bad job and who you'd like to see on the panel.

I often look at some of the dross SKY are covering during the summer months and cannot believe how SKY messed up its opportunity and no longer featured. As a fan, I don't really know the ins and outs. But I do recall the amount of money SKY used to shell out setting up all the gear, and then the match was washed out. They aren't a charity and won't put up with it. BT also.

I look at speedway, 20 years after SKY could have saved it, and see a dangerous shortage of riders with clubs having to share them, like the last cigarette being passed around by kids behind the bike sheds. I see clubs going weeks without a match in the height of summer, which will surely mean some fans will simply get out of the habit and get used to the cash in their pockets.

Meanwhile, fans are expected to tune in to the GPs and see many of the riders (or their type) who put two fingers up at Britain and merely used it like a Tom Cat when the female was in season. Fans are expected to turn up trackside and support riders in their team who aren't even their riders. It's like visiting someone in hospital you don't know and wishing them to get better. It's not someone you know and love. In fact, you ask yourself why bother turning up at the bedside every week to wish someone you don't know get better.   

Looking at British speedway right now, I see remnants of what might have been, ghosts of live matches on SKY and all the missed opportunities.

That could have been the sport's saviour. It should have. But look at it now.

How many lives does it have remaining for British speedway to mess up?

   

 

 

 

Pretty much sums it up perfectly!

The revenue received from SKY was never invested in anyway, no short term (let alone medium or long term) strategy was ever implemented and remember that due to a commission the BSPA naively agreed with the man who negotiated the SKY deal, meant a large chunk of the amount paid by the broadcaster never went to the clubs.

The BSPA failed to capitalise on the more than credible viewing figures to land a title sponsor, shameful! 

Too many petty little squabbles saw promoters try and out do each other on points money paid to certain riders. 

All comes down to the fact that a the sport's weak self governance failed miserably and they totally ballsed everything up by taking SKY for granted and even going back cap in hand at one point!  

Massive opportunity lost - never get another chance like that! 

[moxey63]

Speedway is like that bloke, Michael Carroll, who won £9.7 million on the lottery in 2002 but blew it all within eight years and had to return to his old job as a bin man.

 

[craigACE]

I reckon Premier Sports might get it. Then the BT folk, Kelvin, Nigel, Natalie etc will go to them. There needs to be a highlights/magazine style programme too.