Yahoo! scores Premier League highlights package deal
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Yahoo! has bought the exclusive rights to screen English Premier League games highlights online for the next three seasons.
The highlights packages means that armchair football fans will be able to see five minute highlight packages of every Barclays Premier League match via Yahoo.co.uk. Highlights will be published at midnight on Sunday after weekend matches and at midnight the same day following midweek games. Delivery of the online content will be supported by advertising.
The timing of the online publication means that highlights will be published online only after weekend football games have already been screened online on TV through Match of the Day. The Yahoo! deal has no bearing on either MotD, Sky's live coverage of matches or streaming media subscription services offered by specific clubs, such as liverpool.tv, or international broadcasting rights agreements.
An estimated cumulative global audience 2.65 billion saw at least some of the 100,000 hours of Premier League coverage broadcast in the 2008/09 season, according to Premier League figures.
Richard Scudamore, chief executive of the Premier League, welcomed the deal at a fillip for football fans: “The way fans access Barclays Premier League action is growing ever more diverse and sophisticated. The online highlights package is an important medium for supporters of all our clubs to be able to follow match action.
Yahoo! will also syndicate Premier League highlights content to third parties. The deal follows a similar video content deal that allows highlights from the NBA (basketball), PGA (golf), NHL (hockey) and MLB (baseball) games to be released online via Yahoo.com in the US. ®
COMMENTS
Rant alert
I believe the original reason for not televising 3pm Saturday kick-offs was to protect the gate revenue of Football League clubs, not the Premier Leagues ones. I'm not sure if this argument holds much water, though. Is a Rochdale fan likely to stay at home to watch Chelsea v City instead of supporting his or her own club in person?
It has also given broadcasters excessive influence on the match schedules. You routinely get absurd situations like a London club kicking off in Manchester at 12:45, which means an unholy start for travelling away fans.
It's almost rare now for top teams to kick off at 3pm on Saturday. I believe the only time you are guaranteed a full complement of Premier League games at that time is the last day of the season, ostensibly to prevent the outcome of later games from being influenced by earlier results, which might affect the final league placings.
Where !
have ! all ! the ! exclamation ! marks ! gone ! ??? (Long ! time ! passing ! ...)
Yawn
More of a no score draw if you ask me.
Most proper fans aren't going to wait a day and a half to find out the result, so they will find a way to watch it somewhere else long before midnight Sunday.
If the EPL want to do something revolutionary, how about streaming all the games live? It's bloody stupid that I can only watch the few games they decide on each week (usually featuring the same few top clubs) while people outside the UK can frequently watch lots of other games we can't.
I know their argument is that it would stop as many people going to games but if that is the case it is only because going in person is so bloody expensive these days. Show the same few games on Sky and ESPN, stream the rest online on a pay per view basis and pay the extra money to the clubs on the understanding they reduce their ticket prices. After all, most people would much prefer to go in person if they are physically able and can afford it.
I reckon you would grow the supporter base overall too and as a side-effect would sell more shirts etc.
I and millions of others frequently resort to streaming poor resolution copies from dodgy sites in the far east because if we are unable to make it in person it is the only way for us to watch the game. I would much rather give some money to the club and watch it legitimately, but we aren't allowed to!
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