Crowds

[midfielder]

EXCELLENT NEWS from the TerrOR graph..

Hugely improved TV viewing figures puts FFA in box seat on deal

RECORD A-League viewing figures have triggered free-to-air interest and left the game's heavies bullish about the next TV deal.

Football's future depends heavily on the next deal, and earlier this year there were grave concerns about FFA's bargaining power, off the back of the disastrous World Cup bid and poor A-League ratings last season.

But a revamped marketing campaign and delayed season start has been turbo-charged by the arrival of Harry Kewell and Brett Emerton, with the opening-round clash attracting a record regular season audience of 162,417 on Fox Sports.

While the current $19 million-a-year deal expires on 30 June, 2013, negotiations have already commenced and a deal could be reached by mid-next year.

TV industry sources say all the free-to-air networks have cast an eye over the football rights and it is understood that all remain interested at this early stage.

While Channel 9 is favoured to retain the NRL rights, which expire in 2012, and Channel 7 will broadcast AFL until 2017, digital TV's emergence gives FFA greater scope.

SBS will almost certainly bid, but sources believe Channel 10 will emerge as the most serious contender. Aiding FFA's negotiating position is that the newly appointed CEO of Foxtel, Richard Freudenstein, is a former senior executive at Britain's BSkyB and understands the TV potential of football from his involvement in the massive EPL rights deals.

According to industry observers, the figure for football's new rights deal, based on the multiples achieved by the AFL earlier this year, point to a $30 million to $35 million band, with the value of emerging digital rights being the x-factor.

Leading Australian media buyer and analyst Harold Mitchell said: "The future looks rosy. All of the promise from the early years has returned and as the last two weeks have shown, it has certainly turned the corner."

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/hugely-improved-tv-receptiont-puts-ffa-in-box-seat-on-deal/story-e6frexni-1226191899646

 

[dibo]

Jesus - we have had a good couple of months after three crap years. Let's not get ahead of ourselves.

 

[scottmac]

Jesus - we have had a good couple of months after three crap years. Let's not get ahead of ourselves.

Lets do get ahead of ourselves.

Imagine a replay of the opening round clash between SFC and Victory in the finals. Imagine a finals game between Roar and Victory. Sell out crowds, massive media exposure, record viewing audiences. There are a plethora of reason's for optimisim.

 

[midfielder]

This could shake this up a bit by the time our next deal comes around... from the Independent in the UK.... a MUST watch space ..

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/sony-to-make-its-move-into-online-television-6263313.html

Sony to make its move into online television

Japanese electronics firm weighs up risky plan to take on cable and satellite giants in the US

STEPHEN FOLEY NEW YORK THURSDAY 17 NOVEMBER 2011


Sony is working on a daring plan to shake up the way Americans watch television, with a service that will pipe TV channels direct to the company's PlayStation consoles, BluRay video players and television sets.

The Japanese electronics giant believes it may be one of the companies powerful enough to dislodge cable TV providers and satellite broadcasters from their entrenched position in American homes, and it is in negotiations to assemble content for a new internet TV service for people who buy its devices.

There are already more than 18 million homes in the US with an internet-enabled PlayStation 3, and Sony's new mid and high-end televisions all come with an internet connection. The company already offers movie rentals through its devices, but now wants to add whole TV channels.

In recent weeks it understood to have approached several of the major US broadcasters, including NBC Universal, Discovery Communications and Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, which owns the Fox network. Although Sony has its own movie studio and television production company, it does not own television channels.

As an electronics manufacturer, it has one clear advantage over entrenched cable and satellite broadcasters, says Richard Broughton, the head of broadband media at the research firm Screen Digest. "Cable companies have to be careful about not annoying their existing customers, whereas device manufacturers can put new ser- vices on new devices and test things in the market in a way that a cable or satellite company cannot."

Nonetheless, Sony faces formidable challenges in assembling a suite of TV channels that consumers would be willing to pay for, Mr Broughton said, and persuading them to dump their cable or satellite provider altogether may be an ambition too far.

"The technology is now, and you can reliably deliver TV by the internet to most consumers in most markets at high quality, so that is a lesser challenge than the content rights negotiations."

The television industry is in a period of experimentation, not just in the US but in all major markets, as the possibility has emerged of delivering TV channels, pay-per-view services and video streaming over the internet grows.

New services have sprung up, such as Hulu in the US, which is co-owned by several of the major TV networks, allowing people to watch old episodes of TV shows on demand on their computers.

Cable companies in the US and BSkyB in the UK are rolling out services that allow subscribers to watch channels not just on the TV but on tablet computers.

And looming over the market is the possible entry of Apple, where founder Steve Jobs was working on a television offering before he died last month.

"I'd like to create an integrated television set that is completely easy to use," he told the biographer Walter Isaacson. "It will have the simplest user interface you could imagine. I finally cracked it."

 

[midfielder]

Fetch TV is private company as discussed earlier wanting to set up an online TV broadcaster in Australia ....Fetch’s backer [a Sri Lankan] has Kerry Packer type coin wanting to break into the Australian media...

BUT the mere fact Fetch are in the market place, with Sony now making a big push into online TV... with many media experts saying online TV is the way of the future... look at the 153 million Telstra paid the AFL for application rights... This will keep Fox honest ....

Optus if you go back to the Super League war lost out to Fox / Telstra and Optus payTV essentially rolled over and Fox took over...

Optus has always wanted its own broadcast platform... via Fetch they could get one ...with Sony offering high quality viewing... the Commonwealth Governments roll out of the national broad band will have covered a lot of Australia before the 2013 / 14 season starts .... TBH in the next media deal they will not be in a position to offer mega bucks... but they will be in a position to offer a deal and Fox who is owned 50% by Telstra will not want a online operator... they will not want to give a Optus / Sony / Cashed up and experienced online operator [say but not necessarily Fetch] a foot hol

 

[dibo]

More players may actually drive the price down.

Standard logic goes like this:

More players = competition = lower prices.

Lower prices & same population = lower revenues = lower budgets to purchase


There is an intermediate step, as the competitive process forces a competitive shaking out - players come into the market with money to buy properties to lock themselves into a space, but nobody in IPTV is going to buy the A-League and expect that it will draw a million subscribers immediately.

In other words, even in the 'fighting time' as the market establishes itself, we're not going to be a product that upstarts risk a lot of money on, so we're not going to be in the key battleground.

What follows is that because the fights will be held in other spaces (NRL, AFL) all that happens is the available revenue to hold on to us is diverted to the battleground properties.

 

[midfielder]

More players may actually drive the price down.

Standard logic goes like this:

More players = competition = lower prices.

Lower prices & same population = lower revenues = lower budgets to purchase


There is an intermediate step, as the competitive process forces a competitive shaking out - players come into the market with money to buy properties to lock themselves into a space, but nobody in IPTV is going to buy the A-League and expect that it will draw a million subscribers immediately.

In other words, even in the 'fighting time' as the market establishes itself, we're not going to be a product that upstarts risk a lot of money on, so we're not going to be in the key battleground.

What follows is that because the fights will be held in other spaces (NRL, AFL) all that happens is the available revenue to hold on to us is diverted to the battleground properties.

No doubt AFL & NRL are the top products ...

However in any market as you describe there are always three players... say a farmer selling apples ... a retail store ... and the customer... less buyers means the farmers get screwed ... and customers get some benefits...

The same will apply in the sports markets the more buyers there are of sport the higher will be the price received by the sport...

As for football it has reached a stage were it will be judged on its ratings and these rating will be measured against the AFL as they did the last deal... I have no reason to believe football will not be paid by Fox & Optus and maybe an online broadcaster on current and estimated ratings..

 

[midfielder]

from the smh ... as part of a much larger article ... but all good news...

Let's talk facts. Television ratings - up 80 per cent. Crowds - up 49 per cent. Membership - up 17 per cent. Website traffic - up 30 per cent. Early days, perhaps, but they're still good numbers. It's great timing, given negotiations for the next TV deal are due to start early next year. ''Our partners have never been more satisfied with the work we're doing to bring the TV deal to life,'' Gorman says.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/a-league/clever-strategies-help-turn-aleague-around-20111125-1nz0r.html#ixzz1emJ7Bs5p

More news from Bossia in the TerrOr today... agian part of a much larger article..

The round five game between Melbourne Victory and Brisbane was the top-rating pay TV show for that week. In fact, A-League games filled five of the top-10 ranking programs

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/soccer/a-roar-to-rival-world-cup-joy/story-e6frey4r-1226206533649

 

[midfielder]

Given the AFL got 1.25 billion ... the NRL is saying it has 12 million more in ratings... just putting it here because how well the RL arrange their deal can help us... the AFL have a natural break for an add when someone scores they can run an add before they kick off agian... IN RL you do have as many natural breaks at fairly regular timing... Football has even fewer natural breaks... so will be interesting to see how the NRL argues this case..

RUGBY league's new Independent Commission will demand a full-season schedule from its new television rights partner in 2013 after yesterday's chief executives conference revealed rugby league as the highest ratings sport on Australian TV, outweighing the AFL by 12 million viewers this year.


Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/league-news/league-wins-battle-with-afl-for-tv-viewers-20111129-1o58v.html#ixzz1fEnzA0ND

 

[midfielder]

Part of a report on football from Roy Morgan... among other things shows each A-League teams support base... neear the end... I have no idea how to copy complete with graphs so read if interested.... http://www.roymorganonlinestore.com/News/The-%E2%80%98world-game%E2%80%99-scores-more-Australian-TV-viewers.aspx

 

[midfielder]

Last weekend we passed the one million ... from FFA site..

http://www.footballaustralia.com.au/news-display/hyundai-a-league-season-7-reaches-1-million-fans/44889

The Hyundai A-League has attracted its one millionth fan for the 2011/12 season and is on target for an all-time aggregate record.

Strong attendances in Wellington, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide for Week 17 matches carried the season aggregate to 1,029,882.

With almost 50,000 fans coming to the four matches played over the extended weekend, Season 7 has reached the 1 million mark a week earlier than the previous quickest season in 2007/08.

With 42 regular season matches still to be played, the Hyundai A-League could see yet another record set this season with the highest aggregate regular season crowds recorded.

The highest aggregate regular season total to date is 1,393,933 in 2010/11.

Head of Hyundai A-League Lyall Gorman says that from current figures and attendance trends the season aggregate crowd record will be eclipsed.

“This season has seen a strong spike in crowds of over 30% on our match average, thanks to some excellent football, great drama and the return of stars including Harry Kewell and Brett Emerton,” Gorman said.

“It’s also very encouraging that so many young, local talents are emerging through the ranks to show the very tangible links between the grassroots and the professional tier in our player pathway.

“The ‘We Are Football’ campaign looks to have really energised football fans and there’s still plenty to come in the race for the final series.”

 

[kevrenor]

Unofficial crowd averages HAL 7:

Melbourne Victory +33% (15,234 to 20,256)
Brisbane +43% (9,279 to 13,311)
Sydney +61% (7,656 to 12,350)
Newcastle +44% (8,429 to 12,109)
Central Coast +25% (7,713 to 9,611)
Melbourne Heart +15% (8,315 to 9,552)
Adelaide -20% (11,552 to 9,283)
Wellington +13% (7,981 to 9,003)
Perth -2% (8,488 to 8,309)
Gold Coast -0.5% (3,434 to 3,414)

Some FFA stats

"The cumulative total of 1,416,157 fans for the season bettered the previous season-high total of 1,393,933 in Season 6 (2010/11).

The Season 7 aggregate was reached playing 30 less matches than the previous season with 135 matches being played across 25 weeks compared to 165 matches played in season 6. ​

Almost 50,000 fans attended matches in Wellington, Gold Coast, Perth, Adelaide and Sydney across the weekend to ensure the new mark was set. ​

The Season 7 average regular season attendance of 10,490 was bolstered by significant increases in Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, Central Coast, Newcastle and Wellington. ​

The Hyundai A-League 2011/12 season also saw some increases in other key areas including goals, TV audience and memberships. ​

Season 7 saw an average of 2.7 goals per match, watched by a TV audience that has increased by 46% from last season. Add to this the 23% increase in Club Members and the Hyundai A-League’s growth and potential is gaining momentum. ​

The league has also seen some decreases, most notably in the incidence of red card offences which has seen a significant 21 per cent drop with only 27 red cards being issued in the 2011/12 regular season".

More unofficial data:
HAL season avg

2011-12: average crowd – 10,487
2010-11: average crowd – 8,393
2009-10: average crowd – 9,796
2008-9: average crowd – 12,180
2007-8: average crowd – 14,610
2006-7: average crowd – 12,927
2005-6: average crowd – 10,955
​

 

[MrCelery]

That's good news for Sydney FC in particular. Still a loooong way from being a healthy number for the population base. And will be eroded with an inclusion of a western Sydney club. But a rise is always welcome.

 

[Atomic]

I cant believe how dire Sydney's crowds were last season (7,656). We beat them FFS.

Any Sydney supporter that has the hide to criticise anyone eles's crowds should have a good hard look at their own performance and hang their head in shame.

However, as Celery says, a rise is always welcome.