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'World Cup in HD. we hope' says BBC DG Mark Thompson

70_markthompson Interesting interview with the BBC Director-General Mark Thompson on Radio Five Live this morning. Inevitably one of the questions was about BBC attitudes towards high def. Thompson rolled out the standard reply - HD has taken longer to begin in UK because we have such a good signal already - but then added that the BBC was working hard to screen the World Cup in HD.

However Thompson sounded slightly nervous discussing the issue and even said the words ‘we hope to get the World Cup on the satellite platform.' To these ears it didn’t sound like it was a done deal and I wonder if there are technical issues which could scupper the transmissions. Thompson also intimated that BBC HD would be available on the Sky platform first and that cable would follow after. Maybe I am reading too much into what he said but I do wonder if cable and even satellite viewers will be watching Jens Lehmann’s antics in glorious HD this summer.

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Posted by Shiny Media on April 26, 2006

Comments

I'm sure it must be a done deal because it is being heavily promoted in the Sky magazine.

Posted by: chris price | April 27, 2006 9:33 AM

The problem is probably not technical. The programmes are technically available from the German broadcaster.
The problem is more likely contractual, where the World Cup live UK coverage is contracted to BBC and ITV exclusively, because World Cup coverage is not a free resource.

If BBC and ITV programmes are not otherwise being broadcast on SKY HDTV, then likely SKY have no rights to transmit live coverage of World Cup games in HDTV on SKY. As opposed to transmitting live coverage as SDTV, using BBC and ITV channels on SKY.

Any attempt to broadcast HDTV on SKY before ITV/C4/C5 have HDTV broadcasting, gives SKY a significant commercial advantage, that they otherwise would not have. A bit naughty of the BBC then, to suggest it was possible.

I assume the "correct" commercial way to watch the World Cup on HDTV in the UK is to buy a satellite subscription to the German HDTV broadcasting channel, who have paid a fortune for the broadcasting rights. This is the way UK residents in Europe watch SKY UK broadscasts.

The evidence for this obvious, if SKY could have secured live broadcasting of the World Cup in HDTV, they would have done so. It has to be presumed that they could not.

Posted by: brian reid | April 30, 2006 1:35 PM

"A bit naughty of the BBC then, to suggest it was possible."

Have you forgotten that the BBC broadcasts are done from transponders which are completely independent of Sky? You can receive BBC and ITV satellite broadcasts with a FTA receiver, without any need for a Sky digibox.

Posted by: Fudge | May 3, 2006 7:08 PM

Not forgotten Fudge - I was making a different point to whether the broadcast
might be technically available. No problem with agreeing with you that it is technically available.

The problem is whether the HDTV broadcasts are commercially available. "Infront" are selling World Cup rights on behalf of FIFA, and to be honest it is not completely clear who has HDTV rights to FIFA 2006 World Cup broadcasts in the UK. Cinema projection HDTV rights are beyond any doubt contracted to Euro1080, and it seems possible they may have the UK rights for the display of World Cup HDTV in public places.

For the 2006 World Cup, the ITC Code on Sports and Other Listed Events applies in the UK. The World Cup is a Category A event to be shown free-to-air by the BBC and ITV.

But the BBC and ITV are SDTV broadcasters and I believe that their 2001 contract with FIFA does not, and was never intended to, extend to HDTV rights. FIFA has a number of other products agreed with Infront that would be diminished in value in the UK by HDTV broadcasts. FIFA cannot allow broadcasts that have not been contracted, and considered by other contractors when negotiating their own contracts.

If BSkyB had been capable of negotiating non-exclusive live HDTV rights for SKY, they obviously would have done so, because it was clearly in their interests to do so with the launch of their HDTV service. It bears repeating that it seems obvious that they have not.

Posted by: brian reid | May 5, 2006 3:53 PM

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