NBC secures English Premier League soccer rights

[Bricktop]

Not the same games though right? I think NBC will show the same games as Sportsmax...

[Mosiah]

oh! you think now!

[Bricktop]

At least I know where I live...Sandy blow yuh go back a Viet Cong

[Hortical]

And ESPN as well.

[Gamma]

that is correct, not the same games.

[Paul Marin]

Not the same games though right? I think NBC will show the same games as Sportsmax...

We don't know this for sure. NBC has the rights to EVERY GAME, so you don't know what they will keep or sublicense yet. Also, do you know if SportsMax got their complement of games from FSC or directly from th EPL? If they got it from FSC, then it is likely that they wíll probably sublicense (unless there is competition) from NBC and hence not show the same games as NBC.

[Paul Marin]

And ESPN as well.

Actually - that is less likely as they are a direct competitor to NBC Sports. But...the truth is that we just don't know. NBC may have paid as much as they did because they play to farm out all the ras*cl**t games to every Tom, Dick & Harry (i.e. sum of the parts is greater than the whole) so we may all be channel hunting every weekend to figure out who is showing what. Let's hope this isn't the case.

[Assasin]

I personally don't like the NBC thing. Fox soccer channel had some love for the game and a little excitement. I can't see NBC impacting the coverage. They have MLS now and you don't even know when games are coming on and they don't really build up any excitement about the the thing.

I will hate to see Fox go if they can't get any games.

[Za]

NBC to air six live EPL games a week

It is impossible for NBC to show every EPL game live themselves; FSC will undoubtedly be a delivery vehicle for some of the games as well...but they won't be in control. NBC will keep the big games for themselves.

NBC to air six live EPL games a week
October 28, 2012

By Associated Press
LONDON -- NBC's networks will televise the English Premier League under a $250 million, three-year deal that begins next season.

They will show every match from the world's most popular soccer league, taking coverage away from Fox and ESPN.

"The Barclays Premier League is the pre-eminent soccer league in the world, and is on the cusp of exponential popularity growth here in the U.S.," NBC Sports Group chairman Mark Lazarus said Sunday.

The company picked up Major League Soccer last year and had success with its soccer broadcasts during the London Olympics.

Criticized for using tape delay with the Olympics because of time differences, NBC will not do so with Premier League games, Lazarus said. English-language broadcasts will primarily be on cable channel NBC Sports Network, with Telemundo and mun2 used for Spanish coverage.

NBC's English-language networks will televise six live games a week. One or two of the company's other cable channels will also be used, Lazarus said, but which has not been determined yet as schedules are evaluated. Other games will be streamed live online.

The company has been seeking to expand the audience of NBC Sports Network, which was renamed from Versus after its owner, Comcast, took over NBCUniversal.

"We think we're acquiring a set of assets that has unique affluent male appeal that's very attractive to advertisers and attractive to cable operators," Lazarus said.

And soccer is a potential area for growth with most sports broadcast rights currently under contract, though NBC recently signed a deal with the Formula One auto racing series.

NBC Sports Network's biggest property is the NHL, whose season runs concurrently with English soccer. The EPL will be a good complement to the network's hockey coverage, Lazarus said, adding live soccer games in the morning and afternoon to prime-time NHL broadcasts.

"It's a younger skewing sport than some others out there, like some that are in a championship series right now," Lazarus said, in apparent reference to Major League baseball and its older viewership.

The previous three-year EPL deal with Fox, that saw some matches sublicensed to ESPN, was worth about $80 million. NBC Sports Network is in about twice as many homes in the U.S. as Fox Soccer but about 20 percent fewer than ESPN.

The EPL has sold its TV rights in Britain to BSkyB and BT for 3.018 billion pounds ($4.86 billion) in a record three-year deal from the 2013-14 season.

The EPL said NBC will deliver the "biggest and broadest programming and promotion commitment ever in the United States" for the league.

"The NBC Sports Group has an excellent track record in sports broadcasting," EPL chief executive Richard Scudamore said.

[Bricktop]

We don't know this for sure. NBC has the rights to EVERY GAME, so you don't know what they will keep or sublicense yet. Also, do you know if SportsMax got their complement of games from FSC or directly from th EPL? If they got it from FSC, then it is likely that they wíll probably sublicense (unless there is competition) from NBC and hence not show the same games as NBC.

What? Sportsmax has the rights to EVERY GAME in the Caribbean...they bought the rights through their parent company IMC...

[Peter R]

but i have been able to see EPL games on ESPN AND Sportsmax....how dat?

sportmax made an agreement with espn and fox so that all games cluld be shown... ceo of smax aas on the zone today...they have rights for all epl and intend to come up with some way to ensure all are shown he said..talkin bout next yr.

[Peter R]

We don't know this for sure. NBC has the rights to EVERY GAME, so you don't know what they will keep or sublicense yet. Also, do you know if SportsMax got their complement of games from FSC or directly from th EPL? If they got it from FSC, then it is likely that they wíll probably sublicense (unless there is competition) from NBC and hence not show the same games as NBC.

according to the ceo of smax they struck their own deal and made agreements with espn and fo x to show games in the caribbean... they will have to find partners to broadcast matches next year...they have tts to all matches in aribbean... maybe they will have a smax 2?

[Peter R]

typing on these small touch screens is not easy...and my hands not that big..

[Paul Marin]

What? Sportsmax has the rights to EVERY GAME in the Caribbean...they bought the rights through their parent company IMC...

Who did IMC buy the rights from? EPL or FSC? If its the EPL, then there should be no issue. Not so good if it was FSC.

[Karl]

From SoccerAmerica - who got it from Sports Illustrated

EPL Moving to NBC Next Season
Sports Illustrated

Starting next season, the English Premier League will have a new home in the United States, as NBC Universal announced late Sunday that it has become the exclusive English and Spanish-Language media rights holder in the U.S. for EPL matches across platforms and devices. All of the league’s 380 matches will be accessible across NBC’s properties, which include NBC, NBC Sports Network and NBCSports.com, in addition to Telemundo and mun2 for Spanish-language coverage.

According to Sports Illustrated, the media giant’s winning bid was $250 million for a three-year agreement, which is more than triple the $23 million per year that Fox currently pays for its deal.

In an interview, NBC Chairman Mark Lazarus confirmed that EPL fans would have access to every match on the schedule through some type of NBC platform. "It will not be unlike the Olympics where you saw programming on CNBC, Bravo, USA or MSNBC," Lazarus said. "We are working to make it a consistent schedule so fans know exactly where to find games. But the Premier League fan will be able to get to every game live."

As SI points out, the league has six traditional weekly broadcast slots, including three on Saturday, two on Sunday and one on Monday, which collectively add up to around 200 games. The remaining 180 will be made available either online or through some type of arrangement with your local multichannel video programming distributor (i.e. Comcast, Time Warner Cable, etc).

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/201...#ixzz2AguXKbBh