Patrick Delaney promised "revolutionary coverage" of cricket on the Fox Sports channel.GETTY IMAGES
Cricket is poised for one of the "biggest shake-ups" since Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket 41 years ago when the dedicated Fox Cricket channel is launched next Monday, according to Darren Davison of THE AUSTRALIAN. Foxtel CEO Patrick Delany said, "Australia should be ready for a shift as big as when World Series Cricket launched." Delany promised "revolutionary coverage" of all forms of the game on the Fox Sports channel, "paying homage to the sport's rich history while embracing a new future." Innovations include "agenda-setting talk and entertainment-based shows, higher production values, in-depth analysis, cutting-edge TV graphics, new camera angles, ultra-high definition 4K pictures, accompanied by a new summer soundtrack and one of the best commentary teams in the world." Delany said, "We will shift our tone and voice between test cricket, honoring the past but owning the future, and shorter forms of the game. At the other end, it really is about the future of cricket and youthful exuberance of the Big Bash." Cricket will be shown on subscription-TV in Australia for the first time since Foxtel launched on October 23, 1995, as part of a new six-year, A$1.28B media rights deal between Foxtel and Cricket Australia (THE AUSTRALIAN, 9/10).
