Foxtel's Cricket Ratings Flat So Far Despite Blockbuster Deal

Foxtel’s "audacious investment in cricket" has suffered flat Test ratings amid a "significant spike in the free-to-air audience this summer." The subscription provider, though, said that its introduction of streaming service Kayo Sports makes the figures "smack bang on our forecasts." The pay-TV outlet is "shelling out" $435M over six years as part of Cricket Australia’s "overall local broadcast rights deal" of $830M which it secured with Foxtel and Seven West Media in '18. According to Oztam figures, Foxtel’s Test ratings decreased 1% from its first season under the rights deal in '18-19. That does not include numbers for Foxtel’s streaming app Kayo Sports, which was launched in November '18. As of last November, the app was reported to have 443,000 total subscribers (THE AUSTRALIAN, 1/10).