The Open 2016 - TV Coverage

[MikeH]

Was aware of NowTV but don't like pay per view for any sport on tv and dont want my credit card details stored by companies like this, maybe my age or I'm a tight git but that's how it is. Used to watching The Open live and free for so many years years, unwilling to change, not enough of a golf fan these days to pay more, only want to dip in and out of live coverage, not sit glued to tv for 7 hours - no time with job, kids, stuff to do. Only want the last 9 on Sunday live, could BBC not negotiate for that coverage only for us old skint fogies, leave the rest to Sky?

Many thought the BBC would do what they did with The Masters and negotiate for the split live coverage with Sky over the weekend and my understanding is this would have been acceptable to Sky and The R&A

During the bidding/negotiation process it became very clear the BBC were not interested in any live rights, only the highlights. Then they asked to be released from their obligations to broadcast live coverage from Troon

Don't underestimate the contempt golf is held in by the decision makers at BBC Sport

 

[MikeH]

This is all very well for a younger generation - but I suspect a lot of elderly who have enjoyed the Open just wouldn't or couldn't go there.

Not sure how being 'old' comes into it. Surely it's desire to watch live sport and/or a willingness to pay for the content. Both of which are of course acceptable positions to have. All the media research I see - and I see a lot - its under 25 generation are the demographic who will not pay for content

 

[Alex1975]

Many thought the BBC would do what they did with The Masters and negotiate for the split live coverage with Sky over the weekend and my understanding is this would have been acceptable to Sky and The R&A

During the bidding/negotiation process it became very clear the BBC were not interested in any live rights, only the highlights. Then they asked to be released from their obligations to broadcast live coverage from Troon

Don't underestimate the contempt golf is held in by the decision makers at BBC Sport

What do you think is the reason for that Mike?

 

[Slab]

Not sure how being 'old' comes into it. Surely it's desire to watch live sport and/or a willingness to pay for the content. Both of which are of course acceptable positions to have. All the media research I see - and I see a lot - its under 25 generation are the demographic who will not pay for content

Would the copious amount of media research be conducted predominantly online or electronically/interactively by any chance (where the under 25's are living these days and the old guys don't care about)

 

[Deleted member 15344]

hello all
been reading this thread with interest
Think everyone knows by now my views on how golf has been covered by the BBC/Sky winning live rights to show the Open so wont repeat those but very keen to get an understanding of awareness of the fact you didn't need SKY to watch the Open so if you have 2 mins can you give me some answers/views on the below

Did you know you didn't need to have a sky box/ sky sports subscription to watch the Open?
Did you know you could have taken out a NOW TV pass to watch the whole of Open week for £10.99
Did you know that you can watch NOW TV on a host of devices - one of which is probably whatever you are using to look at this post - at home or, data allowance permitting, on the move without wifi?
Is £10.99 really too much to ask for 40 plus hours of broadcasting one of the biggest golfing events of the year?
Have we all been weaned on free content to the point that we have the mindset of "I want tons of great content, but I don't want to pay for it"

Mike

What about the millions who don't have devices capable to stream using wifi

What about the millions who don't have broadband capable to make it worthwhile to watch online

And you still need to pay further money to watch it

Now TV is great but - you still need to purchase devices that it can be used on - smart phones , tablets , PS etc etc and you still need to have broadband good enough to make it worthwhile watching it - millions in the countries don't have either

It may cost 10.99 for a pass or 6.99 for the day but that's on top of the cost for the device and the Internet that someone might not have and some aren't going to pay money to watch it on a tiny screen with buffering

And how many casual viewers are going to pay to watch it ? As soon as you start asking people to pay for something that was part of something they already pay then the amount of people who watch drop off

The viewing figures for the first day show to me that one the biggest events in the golfing calendar will now just by pass the public and will be watched just by people who are already golf fans.


It's an event that should be ranked alongside all the other protected sports that should be able to be watched live on terrestrial telly

In the past decade or so the golf events that have disappeared of terrestrial telly to subscription telly IMO aren't helping the game - people on terrestrial telly now get two live days of the masters plus the Ladies Open ( which I suspect will be next ) - i put that blame with the government for not putting the Open in the same list as the Olympics etc.

Looking at the stands at the event as well I think golf has a problem - empty stands , lots of unsold seats , added to the viewing figures a lot of people didn't see a fantastic golfing event that showed off how brilliant the sport can be

 

[MikeH]

Would the copious amount of media research be conducted predominantly online or electronically/interactively by any chance (where the under 25's are living these days and the old guys don't care about)

mix of online, face to face. not in Port Louis though. Port Talbot maybe. Port Louis, no

 

[GB72]

Whilst I accept the broadband point, a now TV or roku box can be bought for a tenner

 

[Slab]

mix of online, face to face. not in Port Louis though. Port Talbot maybe. Port Louis, no

Yeah nobody asks me nuthin!

 

[FairwayDodger]

I was only vaguely aware of the now tv option. I've got sky sports so haven't really paid much attention to it.

However as it transpired, I was away for the weekend and staying somewhere that didn't have sky. Had I realised I could watch now tv on any device via the Internet I may well have bought a pass. I'll know next time although I've told my mum if she's planning any family get togethers next year to avoid the open weekend!!

 

[Deleted member 15344]

What do you think is the reason for that Mike?

Budget restraints and costs

The BBC have to cater for everyone and not just sports fans

They were told to reduce their costs and sports have taken a big hit because of those budget cuts - the BBC will pay for big programs like MOTD because over the period of the program they get viewing figures justified enough to continue to show it

Whether we like it or not golf is a minority sport - within tight budget restraints they couldn't afford to pay more for a minority sport

 

[Slab]

I was only vaguely aware of the now tv option. I've got sky sports so haven't really paid much attention to it.

However as it transpired, I was away for the weekend and staying somewhere that didn't have sky. Had I realised I could watch now tv on any device via the Internet I may well have bought a pass. I'll know next time although I've told my mum if she's planning any family get togethers next year to avoid the open weekend!!

Couldn't you have used the sky go option as part of the subscription you already pay and view it on tablet/smartphone/laptop etc

 

[MikeH]

Mike

What about the millions who don't have devices capable to stream using wifi

What about the millions who don't have broadband capable to make it worthwhile to watch online

And you still need to pay further money to watch it

Now TV is great but - you still need to purchase devices that it can be used on - smart phones , tablets , PS etc etc and you still need to have broadband good enough to make it worthwhile watching it - millions in the countries don't have either

It may cost 10.99 for a pass or 6.99 for the day but that's on top of the cost for the device and the Internet that someone might not have and some aren't going to pay money to watch it on a tiny screen with buffering

And how many casual viewers are going to pay to watch it ? As soon as you start asking people to pay for something that was part of something they already pay then the amount of people who watch drop off

The viewing figures for the first day show to me that one the biggest events in the golfing calendar will now just by pass the public and will be watched just by people who are already golf fans.


It's an event that should be ranked alongside all the other protected sports that should be able to be watched live on terrestrial telly

In the past decade or so the golf events that have disappeared of terrestrial telly to subscription telly IMO aren't helping the game - people on terrestrial telly now get two live days of the masters plus the Ladies Open ( which I suspect will be next ) - i put that blame with the government for not putting the Open in the same list as the Olympics etc.

Looking at the stands at the event as well I think golf has a problem - empty stands , lots of unsold seats , added to the viewing figures a lot of people didn't see a fantastic golfing event that showed off how brilliant the sport can be

I asked some questions because I was interested in hearing some specific answers to those questions... but rather than answering them you've come back with what amounts to a long statement of your view on and asking double the number of questions I did!

...takes deep breath and returns to listening to GM podcast

 

[FairwayDodger]

Couldn't you have used the sky go option as part of the subscription you already pay and view it on tablet/smartphone/laptop etc

No, I get sky via virgin so no sky go.

 

[Jimaroid]

Used to watching The Open live and free for so many years

It currently costs approximately £12 a month to watch the BBC and always has had a cost through the license fee. It has never been "free".

I love the Beeb, I think it's great value for money and would happily pay £12 a month for Radio4 alone, but when it comes to golf its day is done. One fundamental problem amongst many is that the BBC can no longer dedicate airtime to the time it takes a major golf tournament to play out.

I'd pay for a BBC Sport channel but the vast majority would not. And there's the problem.

 

[Aztecs27]

What do you think is the reason for that Mike?

Because their priorities lie with making rubbish dramas and making sure they can still afford to produce Eastenders and their priority is clearly with making sure they can afford to show Wimbledon for two weeks of the year, a handful of FA cup games, Premier League Highlights (can't even be bothered with Football league highlights anymore) and the Olympics every 4 years...nearly forgot the odd Rugby League game - definitely need that as a priority over the world's biggest golf tournament :-/

Their focus is clearly on non-sporting TV these days, save for the odd bit of sport (compared to yesteryear). A shame that they'd waste so much money on big budget drama really, but there must be enough people viewing it and not enough people viewing the sport to warrant the decision.

 

[Deleted member 16999]

Budget restraints and costs

The BBC have to cater for everyone and not just sports fans

They were told to reduce their costs and sports have taken a big hit because of those budget cuts - the BBC will pay for big programs like MOTD because over the period of the program they get viewing figures justified enough to continue to show it

Whether we like it or not golf is a minority sport - within tight budget restraints they couldn't afford to pay more for a minority sport

You've answered your previous post,
and if budgets are so restrained, what misses out to pay for The Open.

It's live on Radio, Sky and Internet, nobody cares about the casual viewer, why should we?

Plenty of initiatives been run by R&A.

 

[Deleted member 18588]

Budget restraints and costs

The BBC have to cater for everyone and not just sports fans

They were told to reduce their costs and sports have taken a big hit because of those budget cuts - the BBC will pay for big programs like MOTD because over the period of the program they get viewing figures justified enough to continue to show it

Whether we like it or not golf is a minority sport - within tight budget restraints they couldn't afford to pay more for a minority sport

Yet they find the money to cover Wimbledon and the number of participants in tennis is approx 10% of those for golf.

The Olympics is a whole bunch of minority sports, indeed apart from football every other sport could be described as minority.

Largely due to its Hampstead/Highgate trendy left domination the BBC has long seen golf as a bastion of the white, male, middle classes and, therefore, not worthy of spending the market rate upon.

That being so this debate is now, indeed has long been, futile as there is no will on the part of anyone senior within the BBC to devote any of their admittedly low sports budget to the game of golf.

Like many I would prefer that it were on BBC but "it ain't never gonna happen."

 

[Deleted member 15344]

It currently costs approximately £12 a month to watch the BBC and always has had a cost through the license fee. It has never been "free".

I love the Beeb, I think it's great value for money and would happily pay £12 a month for Radio4 alone, but when it comes to golf its day is done. One fundamental problem amongst many is that the BBC can no longer dedicate airtime to the time it takes a major golf tournament to play out.

I'd pay for a BBC Sport channel but the vast majority would not. And there's the problem.

I think the last statement is the big issue now

As more sports move to subscription services the only people that will watch the sport now will be someone who is already a fan - most of us on here will pay for Sky because we have to if we want to watch Golf or indeed any regular sport now which is live.

The biggest issue is that the money we are paying very rarely seems to make the sport easier to watch or helps promote the sport - football is a big example of how the rich keep getting richer and your average fan struggles to be able to watch it live. Will golf go that way with the R&A enjoying the new riches they have so the prize money for the players goes up and then the vicious circle begins - people are forced to pay more and more

 

[GB72]

image: http://forums.golf-monthly.co.uk/images/misc/quote_icon.png
Quote Originally Posted by Liverpoolphil
image: http://forums.golf-monthly.co.uk/images/buttons/viewpost-right.png
View Post
Budget restraints and costs

The BBC have to cater for everyone and not just sports fans

They were told to reduce their costs and sports have taken a big hit because of those budget cuts - the BBC will pay for big programs like MOTD because over the period of the program they get viewing figures justified enough to continue to show it

Whether we like it or not golf is a minority sport - within tight budget restraints they couldn't afford to pay more for a minority sport '

I actually think that the argument is totally the opposite and the BBC should ditch Match of the Day and show more niche sports. The idea of the BBC is to be a public service broadcaster funded in such a way as to be free from the constraints of viewing figures. The idea is that it should cover areas that would not be taken up by commercial TV. The argument is that the BBC should be more niche in all areas rather than pander to viewing figures but that idea seems to have been lost. If the BBC got rid of the football highlights package it would not disappear, it would just re-appear on ITV or channel 4.

Out of interest Mike, are you aware of whether the viewing rights for The Open was a 2 horse race or whether commercial terrestrial TV was invited to bid.

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Yet they find the money to cover Wimbledon and the number of participants in tennis is approx 10% of those for golf.

The Olympics is a whole bunch of minority sports, indeed apart from football every other sport could be described as minority.

Largely due to its Hampstead/Highgate trendy left domination the BBC has long seen golf as a bastion of the white, male, middle classes and, therefore, not worthy of spending the market rate upon.

That being so this debate is now, indeed has long been, futile as there is no will on the part of anyone senior within the BBC to devote any of their admittedly low sports budget to the game of golf.

Like many I would prefer that it were on BBC but "it ain't never gonna happen."

Wimbledon is one the biggest sporting draws on telly - average over 10 million viewers for finals day and a couple million every day - they show 13 days of tennis and the viewing they get justifies the cost they pay for it. It's also protected by the government and must be available to terrestrial viewers - Tennis is not a minority sport in regards viewers

The same with the Olympics - it's viewed and watched by millions and covers every spectrum of sport

The Open could easily be added back onto the gold protected list - especially if R&A request it via the government - it will depend on how the viewing figures pan out over the years and what affect it has on the sport