Europe
UFC returns to Russian screens with fresh Match TV deal
Russian sports media platform Match TV has regained rights to mixed martial arts promotion the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Eurosport, France Télévisions secure rights to Women’s Rugby World Cup
International sports broadcaster Eurosport and public-service broadcaster France Télévisions have been confirmed as rights-holders of this year’s Women’s Rugby World Cup national team tournament in France.
Deltenre to step down as director general of EBU
Ingrid Deltenre has said she will resign as director general of the European Broadcasting Union consortium of public-service broadcasters.
Orange chief keen to work with Canal Plus on sports rights
Orange chief executive Stéphane Richard has said the telco is interested in working with French pay-television broadcaster Canal Plus on acquiring sports rights.
Bayern confirms channel launch
German Bundesliga football club Bayern Munich has confirmed it will launch its own linear television channel, FC Bayern.tv, on February 27.
Sportdigital to show Chinese Super League
German pay-television broadcaster Sportdigital has acquired rights for football’s Chinese Super League.
Servus TV picks up rights to World Superbikes
Servus TV, the commercial broadcaster owned by the Red Bull Media House division of Red Bull, has acquired rights for the Superbike World Championship.
BT Sport enters esports arena to cover Fifa 17 events
UK pay-television broadcaster BT Sport has made its first move into the esports sector by acquiring rights to the Fifa Ultimate Team Championship Series.
Watching Brief (Vol.144) UK Television Audiences Monday 6th to Sunday 12th February
UK viewing audiences for the week between Monday 6th and Sunday 12th February, and a review of January's audiences on pay-television.
Infront to shut Dutch office
The Infront Sports & Media agency has said it will close its office in the Netherlands in an effort to consolidate its winter sports operations.
TVE picks up rights to Madrid’s Tie Break Tens event
Spanish public-service broadcaster TVE has acquired rights to the upcoming Tie Break Tens tennis event in Madrid.
BBC lines up badminton coverage
UK public-service broadcaster the BBC has acquired rights for the 2017 Badminton World Championships.
L’Équipe extends EWC rights deal
L’Équipe, the French digital-terrestrial television channel, has renewed its agreement for rights to the International Motorcycling Federation’s (FIM) Endurance World Championship.
Rights-holders and search engines to tackle infringing content
Representatives of rights-holders and internet search engines have agreed to collaborate for the first time on reducing the availability of infringing content accessed through online searches in the UK.
Channel 4 considers Champions League bid
UK commercial broadcaster Channel 4 is exploring the possibility of bidding for live rights to the Uefa Champions League European club football competition, according to the Daily Telegraph newspaper.
SFR Sport picks up rights to Fiba Europe Cup
French pay-television broadcaster SFR Sport has acquired rights to the Europe Cup, a club competition operated by the International Basketball Federation (Fiba).
ESL and Sliver.tv claim first with virtual stadium experience
Esports company ESL and virtual reality entertainment platform Sliver.tv have unveiled their latest joint initiative by stating they will launch the first virtual esports stadium experience.
Manchester United recruits Yahoo exec as new media chief
Manchester United has hired senior Yahoo executive Phil Lynch as its new chief executive of media as the English Premier League football club seeks to roll out a subscription-based application that will allow its in-house television channel, MUTV, to be available worldwide.