Rai and Discovery sign off on Pyeongchang 2018 partnership

Italian public-service broadcaster Rai has sealed a sublicensing deal with media company Discovery Communications for rights to the 2018 winter Olympic Games.

Today’s (Wednesday’s) announcement comes after Rai’s board of directors last month approved the agreement for Pyeongchang 2018, adding that a “negotiating framework” was also in place for rights to the 2020 summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

Discovery will sublicense to Rai free-to-air audio-visual rights for Pyeongchang 2018 on DTT and on satellite platform Tivusat. Rai will present a wide selection of free-to-air coverage – up to 100 hours – on up to two television channels and digital simulcast.

Discovery’s sports broadcaster, Eurosport, retains exclusivity for select live events in curling, ice hockey, Nordic combined and skeleton. For the latter sport, both Rai and Eurosport will show semi-finals, finals and medal events where an Italian athlete(s) or team is competing for a medal.

In addition to Eurosport’s television coverage, the Eurosport Player digital service will be the only place for fans to watch every minute, every athlete and every sport – online, on mobile, tablet devices or connected televisions.  As part of the first fully digital Games for Europe, more than 4,000 hours of coverage and 100 events will be available, including 900 hours of live action.

Today’s agreement comes after Rai in April threatened to pull out of negotiations, describing the difference between the two parties as “unbridgeable”.

Rights to the 2014 and 2016 Olympic Games in Italy were acquired by pay-television broadcaster Sky, with Rai subsequently sublicensing live rights to Rio 2016 and highlights of Sochi 2014.

In June 2015, Discovery acquired Olympic Games rights in 50 European territories in a four-Games deal with the International Olympic Committee, from 2018 to 2024.