Chinese internet portals Sina, Sohu, Tencent and Netease have turned down sublicensing deals for live rights for the 2012 Olympic Games in favour of on-demand rights, according to local news service the Sichuan Morning News.
The newspaper said the exclusive rights-holder in China for the 2012 Olympics, state broadcaster CCTV, offered the portals three sub-licensing options for internet rights. Plan A, priced at CNY55 million (€6.9 million/$8.7 million), included live and on-demand rights, plus rights for CCTV programming. Plan B, priced at CNY35 million, offered live and on-demand rights. Plan C offered on-demand rights only, costing CNY28 million. All four portals have agreed deals under Plan C.
Sohu’s chief editor Liu Chun said that live rights had a “low price-to-performance ratio” as the time difference between the UK and China will mean the majority of London 2012’s events will take place in the evening in China. Liu said this will impact online coverage, as the majority of viewers will opt to view live television coverage instead.