United Kingdom
BBC secures Australian Open highlights
UK public-service broadcaster the BBC has agreed a sublicensing deal with media group Discovery for highlights rights to the 2022 Australian Open tennis tournament
Arena Television racked up ‘nearly £300m’ in loans before collapse – administrators
Arena Television, a UK-based outside broadcast company which ceased trading in November, borrowed almost £300m (€359m/$406m) from 55 lenders for fake assets, according to administrators for the group.
Racing League gains terrestrial exposure with ITV deal
The Racing League, the UK horse racing competition, has secured free-to-air television exposure for its second season after agreeing a rights deal with commercial broadcaster ITV
BT Sport to show Spanish Super Cup exclusively
BT Sport, the UK pay-television broadcaster, is to show live and exclusive coverage of this month’s Spanish Super Cup from Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.
BT considers options as cracks show in three-way talks with DAZN and Sky
As DAZN Group’s protracted effort to acquire BT Sport reaches its conclusion in one way or another, neither party wants to make final concessions to seal a deal before the year’s end.
HBA Media aggregates more horse racing international rights in RMG alliance
Racecourse Media Group, the media and data rights holding company for 34 British racecourses, has agreed a three-year deal for the HBA Media agency to market and distribute its portfolio of British and…
Seven League hires Pinterest executive Ghai to digital commercial role
Seven League, the digital sports consultancy that now sits within IMG’s Media & Events division, has appointed Pinterest executive Bindi Ghai as vice-president, digital commercial, as the company continues t…
Sky and BBC land Africa Cup of Nations rights
UK broadcast rights to next month’s Africa Cup of Nations have been sold to the BBC, the public-service broadcaster, and Sky, the pay-television broadcaster.
Altice ups BT interest as government ‘monitors situation’
The UK government has said it is “monitoring the situation carefully” after Altice UK, owned by French billionaire Patrick Drahi, further increased its stake in telco BT.
Premier Sports launches on Amazon Prime
UK pay-television broadcaster Premier Sports has agreed a distribution deal with Amazon under which its five channels will be available on Prime Video
FreeSports adds distribution on Samsung TV Plus
FreeSports, the UK free-to-air channel, has been added to Samsung TV Plus, the advertising-supported streaming service
Channel 4 to broadcast live coverage of F1 finale with Sky
Free-to-air broadcaster Channel 4 has agreed a deal with pay-television broadcaster Sky to share live coverage of Sunday’s season finale to the Formula 1 motor racing world championship.
Ofcom ‘provisionally minded’ to back exclusive Six Nations on BBC, ITV
UK media watchdog Ofcom is consulting on requests from public-service broadcaster the BBC and commercial broadcaster ITV for approval to broadcast exclusive live coverage of the Six Nations rugby union…
Discovery ‘in the mix’ with BT Sport ‘joint venture’ proposal
US media group Discovery is in talks to form a joint venture with BT concerning the UK telco’s BT Sport arm, according to reports.
Nent hit by sudden passing of CFO Catrina
Gabriel Catrina, chief financial officer at Nordic Entertainment (Nent) Group, has died suddenly after a short illness
FreeSports picks up exclusive Lanka Premier League rights in UK
FreeSports, the UK free-to-air channel, has acquired exclusive rights to this month’s Lanka Premier League.
BBC to show Copa Libertadores final again
UK public-service broadcaster the BBC will once again show live coverage of football’s Copa Libertadores final.
RMG signs long-term Flutter deal focused on streaming rights, advertising
Racecourse Media Group, the media and data rights holding company for 34 British racecourses, has entered into a long-term deal with Flutter Entertainment, the parent company of betting companies such…