Racecourse Media Group, the holding company responsible for media and data rights involving a host of horse-racing destinations, has extended a partnership with SIS to include direct-to-home and streaming rights to all Irish racecourses and Chelmsford City horse-racing events.
The deal will run for five years, from 2019 to 2023.
The deal with SIS, a provider of end-to-end products and services to the betting and broadcast industries, will ensure that racing from all 26 Irish racecourses, plus racing from Chelmsford City, will be shown in high definition for the first time on pay-television channel Racing UK, which is operated by RMG.
SIS’s horse-racing rights will be added to Racing UK’s streaming services for online bookmakers in the UK and Ireland, while RMG will add SIS’s rights to its international television offering, which is distributed to broadcasters worldwide.
SIS has the rights to Irish racing through an agreement with the Association of Irish Racecourses.
Last month, RMG and SIS extended their existing licensed betting offices partnership to encompass international pool betting and fixed odds rights, including retail and online. The agreement means that RMG will control the pool betting service globally for horse-racing content from RMG, Ireland and Chelmsford City. SIS will control the fixed odds betting service for RMG and SIS content, which includes Irish racecourses, Chelmsford City, international, greyhound and virtual racing.
The deal was criticised by Arena Racing Company, the largest racecourse operator in the UK, which is currently engaged in a joint venture for distributing British and Irish racing to overseas betting operators. ARC hit out at RMG’s decision to team up with SIS and walk away from GBI, the international rights arm of British Racing, from 2019.