Foxtel will broadcast European football direct through its service in a deal with beIN Media Group "that will be seen as an attempt by the pay-TV giant to retain customers unhappy at its loss of English Premier League rights to Optus," according to Dominic White of the SYDNEY MORNING HERALD. Foxtel and beIN announced the launch of three beIN Sports HD channels available to Foxtel sports subscribers "at no extra cost to the Foxtel sport pack, boosting the pack's offering from nine to 12 sports channels." Existing subscribers to beIN Sports' A$20 ($15.35) per month channel on Foxtel who also take Foxtel's sports pack "will no longer have to pay extra for beIN coverage." BeIN acquired Setanta Sports Australia in '14. Foxtel's sports coverage was "dealt a blow late last year when Optus announced that it had secured the rights to show English Premier League games" for A$63M ($48M) per season for the next three seasons, starting in August. BeIN Sports has coverage of other European domestic leagues -- La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1 and Bundesliga -- "as well as South American football and European Rugby Union." Foxtel is owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. and Telstra, which "are hoping to merge Foxtel with News' Fox Sports" before a proposed A$8B ($6.1B) sharemarket float, which would involve Telstra selling "most of its stake in a combined business," in the second half of '16 (SMH, 3/31). BeIN Sports is also the home of European Rugby Union with the European Rugby Champions Cup and the Six Nations tournament live and in HD as well as selected games from the Wallabies and All Black Spring Tour in November, featuring games against Wales, Scotland and Ireland (beIN Sports).
