The media adviser who worked with the National Rugby League on the previous broadcast rights deal "has warned that the decision to sign a new agreement with the Nine Network, blindsiding Fox Sports," has put at risk the code's hopes of an expected A$1.7B ($1.24B) payday, according to Stuart Honeysett of THE AUSTRALIAN. Global Media and Sports Managing Dir Colin Smith, an adviser on sports media rights, said that Fox Sports had been disrespected and left with "crap content." Smith: "You can't say this is entirely respectful of them, being a long-term broadcaster, by the NRL. A deal has still got to be done with Fox Sports and everyone has been predicting -- me included -- that it could be up to A$1.7 billion. And if people are mad it could even go up to A$2 billion ($1.46B), but that's going to be a lot tougher now. It's a massive gamble." The NRL announced on Monday that it had signed a A$925M ($674M) deal. While it was a good day for Nine CEO David Gyngell, "the same can't be
said" for Fox Sports CEO Patrick Delany, who was "reportedly
left stunned by the speed of the negotiations." Fox Sports did not know that a deal with Nine had been done until the
NRL issued a press release on Monday, and that Delany has "subsequently
met" with NRL CEO Dave Smith. Colin Smith warned that Fox "might ask for exclusive streaming rights
to compensate for losing games but there was still a danger that they
might not pay as much as they did for their rights last time." That would
leave the NRL well short of the A$1.7B mark (THE AUSTRALIAN, 8/12).
