Bundesliga remains free-to-air

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German soccer association Deutsche Fußball Liga (DFL) wants to ensure that comprehensive coverage of first division Bundesliga games in the seasons 2009 till 2012 remain on free-to-air television. The league has come up with two free-to-air scenarios for the upcoming tender of the rights.

The first model is the existing arrangement whereby coverage is screened on Saturday shortly after the day’s matches end. This is now the case with footage on public broadcaster ARD’s popular sports show Sportschau. The second option comprises a fortnightly screening of a live game on Sundays as well as a compilation of highlights each evening at 18:45 CET. The rights holder would be able to screen the first footage of up to four games on free-to-air television.

Pay-TV broadcasters such as Premiere will particularly be hoping that the second variation comes to pass, as viewers would have to wait a day longer than they presently do for Bundesliga reports on free-to-air television. Both versions would additionally include a “Game of the Month” on eight-match weekends per season on Saturday evening at 20:30 CET, for which free-to-air as well as pay-TV operators can place bids in the tender.

“In the interest of fans, clubs and sponsors we want to ensure an attractive presence of the Bundesliga on free-to-air television. We will therefore offer two attractive scenarios, both of which have good chances of being realised,” said the soccer league’s president Reinhard Rauball. DFL’s CEO Christian Seifert explained: “A balanced mix of free-to-air and pay-TV is the right concept for the German market. The Bundesliga will continue to remain a not purely pay-TV event.”

The tender will commence as soon as the federal cartel office has given the green light. It is currently investigating both DFL’s centralised rights allocation and the planned scheme whereby DFL in conjunction with media entrepreneur Leo Kirch will offer pay-TV broadcasters a turnkey solution instead of allowing them to produce the footage in-house.





source: Rapid TV News