Multi-sport

James Murdoch is set to return as chairman of pan-European pay-television broadcast group Sky, replacing Nicholas Ferguson in the role.

Russian media group Gazprom Media Holding and China’s state-owned Shanghai Media Group have joined forces under a strategic partnership.

Unscriptd, an athlete media company that aims to help professional athletes create and publish their unfiltered personal stories in short-form video format, has launched with the backing of some of the leading stars of world sport.

Media rights clips from December 17 to January 20

Russian sports media platform Match TV is set to launch a number of new television channels, along with closing or renaming other channels within its structure.

Rona Fairhead, the chair of the BBC Trust, has said it is likely that the UK public-service broadcaster will introduce further cutbacks on its sports coverage in order to save costs.

Polish media and telecommunications group Cyfrowy Polsat, its television channel Polsat Sport and media company Grupa Onet – Ringier Axel Springer Polska have entered into an exclusive distribution agreement for sports content.

New Zealand public-service broadcaster TVNZ has acquired rights for the 2018 Commonwealth Games multi-sport event.

Hernan Lopez, president and chief executive of Fox International Channels, is to depart the broadcast subsidiary of media company 21st Century Fox as it undergoes a structural reorganisation.

Bill Rasmussen, founder of sports broadcaster ESPN, has launched a new company with proprietary technology which aims to significantly improve and enhance the fan experience at live sports events in venues of all sizes.

Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN), formerly known as Multi Screen Media, has said the first co-branded television channels developed in partnership with sports broadcaster ESPN will be launched in the Indian subcontinent on January 17.

Polish commercial and pay-television broadcaster Polsat has secured licences for the launch of two new sports channels in the country.

The NBC Sports Group division of US media group NBCUniversal has extended and expanded its partnership with internet company Yahoo.

The Learfield Sports agency has secured new multimedia rights partnerships with Texas A&M University and Dartmouth College in the US.

Chinese internet company LeTV, which operates the Le Sports service, has agreed a deal to acquire a 20-per-cent stake in media technology company TCL Multimedia and will form a joint venture with Digital Domain Investments to provide live sports virtual reality services.

Gazzetta TV, the Italian sports channel operated by the RCS MediaGroup, could close down, according to multiple reports in the country.