RUGBY LEAGUE FOOTBALL – AUSTRALIA

Finals football shows television is far from dead

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 4-Oct-16

Seven West Media CEO Tim Worner says the high ratings for the AFL and NRL grand finals demonstrates the continued strength of traditional broadcast television. The Seven Network’s coverage of the AFL grand final attracted an average national audience of almost 4.1 million, while the Nine Network’s NRL broadcast was viewed by a national average audience of about 3.7 million.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, WESTERN BULLDOGS FOOTBALL CLUB, CRONULLA SHARKS, MELBOURNE STORM RUGBY LEAGUE CLUB LIMITED, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED

Finals fever part 2: Storm and Sharks fans compared

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: online : 29-Sep-16

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey has found that Melbourne Storm and Cronulla Sharks have very different-sized fan bases. As of June 2016, Melbourne Storm was the second-most popular team in the National Rugby League (after the Brisbane Broncos), with 836,000 supporters – no less than 15.1% of total NRL fans. In contrast, the Sharks’ 202,000 supporters account for 3.7% of the League’s total fans. While it is relatively small, the Sharks fan base is noteworthy for being composed of more women than men. Almost 65% of Sharks supporters are female. On the other hand, nearly 61% of Storm fans are men.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, MELBOURNE STORM RUGBY LEAGUE CLUB LIMITED, CRONULLA SHARKS, BRISBANE BRONCOS RUGBY LEAGUE CLUB LIMITED

1 in 15 AFL and NRL Grand Final viewers could be betting on the outcome

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 28-Sep-16

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey has found that 602,000 Australians aged 18+ (3.3 per cent) placed bets on AFL or NRL games during the year to June 2016, up from 520,000 (2.9 per cent) in the year to June 2013. Some 409,000 Australians bet on AFL matches in the last year, and 70 per cent used a website or app to place their most recent bet on the sport, up from 48 per cent three years ago. Meanwhile, some 306,000 Australians placed a bet on an NRL match in the last 12 months, with the proportion who did so online rising from 38 per cent in 2013 to 62 per cent.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE

Grand finals fever delivers TV networks ad bonanza

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Original article by Darren Davidson, Jake Mitchell
The Australian – Page: 23 & 25 : 26-Sep-16

New figures show that the Seven Network’s coverage of the 2016 Australian Football League finals has attracted an average audience of 1.14 million per match, with some 443,000 tuning in to Fox Sports’ coverage. The Nine Network also enjoyed strong ratings for its coverage of the National Rugby League preliminary finals. The grand finals of the two codes are expected to boast bumper ratings and advertising revenue for the host broadcasters, with a 30-second ad tipped to cost up to $A100,000.

CORPORATES
SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, WESTERN BULLDOGS FOOTBALL CLUB, SYDNEY SWANS FOOTBALL CLUB, MELBOURNE STORM RUGBY LEAGUE CLUB LIMITED, CRONULLA SHARKS, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION AUSTRALIA LIMITED, VIRGIN AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX VAH, AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED MOTOR INSURERS LIMITED, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, McDONALD’S AUSTRALIA LIMITED, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY FOOTBALL CLUB, GEELONG FOOTBALL CLUB, BUNNINGS GROUP LIMITED, SPORTSBET AUSTRALIA, JIM BEAM BRANDS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, KFC, NORTH QUEENSLAND COWBOYS, CANBERRA RAIDERS

NRL clubs threaten breakaway over TV

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 5 : 19-Nov-15

The National Rugby League (NRL) faces a potential split over the issue of pay-TV broadcasting rights, with some teams warning that they could withdraw from the league if a deal is not finalised. The NRL had been negotiating a new deal with Fox Sports and Telstra, but it is believed to have canvassed interest from Singtel Optus, which recently secured exclusive Australian rights to English Premier League matches.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, AUSTRALIAN RUGBY LEAGUE COMMISSION LIMITED, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC

Nine may save by ceding Saturday night NRL

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 12-Nov-15

Fox Sports owner News Corp is continuing to hold talks with the National Rugby League regarding pay-TV broadcasting rights. The media group has indicated that it is willing to pay $A30m a year to broadcast the Saturday night NRL match, which Nine Entertainment Company acquired as part of a $A925m five-year free-to-air and streaming rights deal earlier in 2015. Nine is said to be seeking to have the cost of its deal reduced by about $A40m a year in return for relinquishing the Saturday night fixture.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, AUSTRALIAN RUGBY FOOTBALL LEAGUE, OZTAM PTY LTD, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE

NRL looks to seal deal for two Friday games

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Original article by Jake Mitchell, Brent Read
The Australian – Page: 3 : 11-Nov-15

The National Rugby League may finalise a deal for pay-TV rights in the next several weeks. Negotiations with Fox Sports are believed to involve regaining the rights to a Saturday night match, which the Nine Network secured in its recent $A925m deal with the NRL. Fox Sports would also gain the rights to a Friday night match, while Nine would broadcast a second match on Friday. Any deal is said to be condition on Fox Sports regaining the popular Saturday night match.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS

Nine ready to deal with News on NRL

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 19 : 22-Oct-15

Nine Entertainment Company recently secured a $A925m deal to broadcast National Rugby League matches from 2018. It includes the Super Saturday match that is currently broadcast exclusively by News Corp Australia-owned Fox Sports. News Corp paid $A530m for the NRL’s pay-TV rights under its current deal, but it is believed to be unwilling to pay as much for the next rights deal unless the Saturday match is included. Nine is said to be willing to negotiate on relinquishing the match.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Murdochs v the NRL

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Original article by Dominic White, John Stensholt
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 44 : 25-Aug-15

Stripping Foxtel of its exclusive rights to a Saturday night game has brought the wrath of News Corp down on National Rugby League (NRL) CEO Dave Smith. It is believed News executives were embarrassed when the NRL unveiled a surprise $A925 million broadcasting rights deal with Nine Entertainment, leaving them out of the loop.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NINE FILMS AND TELEVISION PTY LTD, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, FOX SPORTS, OPTUS VISION HOLDINGS PTY LTD, SUPER LEAGUE, DIRECT FACTORY OUTLETS PTY LTD

AFL’s deal of the decade

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Original article by John Stensholt, Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1&8 : 19-Aug-15

News Corporation, Seven West Media and Telstra have signed a broadcasting rights deal with Australian Football League (AFL). The $A2.508 billion six-year agreement is the largest sports rights deal in Australian television history. News Corporation chairman Rupert Murdoch said on 18 August 2015 that the AFL code is considered by the company as the premium code in Australia.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION