The broadcast rights to the next three English Premier League seasons have been purchased by telecommunications giant Optus.
The deal, reportedly worth more than $50 million, will see the English top-flight excluded from Fox Sports come the 2016/17 season.
In a statement released to the media earlier today, Optus CEO Allen Lew described the move as part of the strategy to become “a mobile-lead multimedia company”.
“With 930 million followers worldwide, the Premier League is one of the most sought after sports properties for content providers,” said Mr Lew.
“We are dedicated to delivering the best domestic and international entertainment for our customers.
“This includes live broadcast coverage and digital rights for broadband and mobile for all 380 Premier League games, every season.”
A subsidiary of industry competitor Telstra, Fox Sports has expressed its disappointment at the announcement, with the live Premier League broadcasts a key factor in attracting sports fans into Foxtel subscriptions.
The Australian Financial Review has rumoured that Optus’ $50 million bid for the rights was “significantly higher” that any amount offered by Fox Sports or beIN and while it has not been confirmed in exactly what manner we will see the Premier League delivered under the new deal, their online viewing service FetchTV will likely be a driving force.
“Our goal is to make this content available to as many fans as possible – but we’re not going in to detail about distribution platforms at this stage,” an Optus spokesperson stated to Fairfax Media.
[interaction id=”5636e26aafdd55437c09d9dd”]
The move follows on from previous forays into sport broadcasting, already purchasing the digital rights for the summer’s Australian cricket matches, while we have also seen live tennis streamed to mobile devices.
With a little over six-months to enjoy their Premier League exclusivity, Fox Sports will have to find a way to rebound back into the football market, while fans can get excited about a deal which will further evolve how we see the game in this country.
What are your thoughts? Let us know by dropping a comment below via our Facebook comment box. Make sure you follow us on Twitter @Outside90 and like us on Facebook.
