The German Volleyball League (DVL) signed a new three-year, media-rights deal with GIP (Gesellschaft für Internetportale mbH) regarding production and marketing of men's and women's Bundesliga games. Starting in October, volleyball fans will be able to regularly watch live broadcasts online at www.spobox.tv. DVL Chair Michael Evers said, "I'm pleased that the Bundesliga is returning to the screens. Live broadcasts are an important element to fuel the excitement of Bundesliga fans and the popularity of volleyball in general." The new deal calls for the production of at least 34 games a season. Both sides plan on exceeding this number and produce 40 games during the '12-13 season. There will be one game a week during the regular season. During the men's and women's playoffs, GIP will broadcast the top game each game day. The first games will be the season opener in the men's Bundesliga between defending champion BR Volleys and Cup champion VfB Friedrichshafen on Oct. 15, and the season opener in the women's Bundesliga between defending champion Schweriner SC and VfB Stuhl on Oct. 19. Another important component of the league's TV concept continues to be the Bundesliga coverage on the nation's public broadcasters as well as regional private TV channels (DVL).
