Australian pay-television broadcaster Sky Racing will cease coverage of horseracing in Victoria on June 15, according to parent company Tabcorp, a gambling operator in the country.
Tabcorp told the country’s stock exchange that it submitted an offer for the rights to events operated by the Racing Victoria body on June 1.
Sky Racing sealed a temporary rights deal earlier this year following the demise of pay-television broadcaster TVN, the previous rights-holder, which stopped showing coverage in March.
Racing Victoria has said that its preferred new free-to-air rights partner is commercial broadcaster Seven, with Sky Racing continuing to show “domestic, international and digital” coverage.
However, the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper said that Seven would not be able to start broadcasting the coverage until August.
“Tabcorp notes the announcement by Racing Victoria… that it is recommending to its four member racing clubs that its preferred outcome for the broadcast of Victorian thoroughbred racing is to partner with Seven,”
Tabcorp said. “Tabcorp made a formal offer on June 1, 2015, in accordance with a timetable agreed with Racing Victoria. At the same time as submitting its formal offer, Tabcorp gave notice that the current interim broadcasting arrangements with Victorian thoroughbred racing will cease on June 15, 2015.”