SEN gets the go ahead to broadcast footy

[one-eyed]

New look radio deal
4:26:03 PM Thu 19 October, 2006
Paul Gough
Sportal for afl.com.au

For the first time all Victorian footy fans will be guaranteed radio coverage of their team's matches interstate under the AFL's new radio rights deal, announced on Thursday.

The new deal - which covers the 2007-09 seasons - will also see the emergence of a new broadcaster in Melbourne's 24 hour all sports station - SEN 1116.

The leading three broadcasters in the ABC, the Triple M Network and Melbourne's 3AW have also signed new three-year deals to maintain their long-running football coverage but all networks have had to pay significantly more for the privilege.

The AFL's chief operating officer Ben Buckley said the biggest difference in the new radio agreement was the fact that every match of every team in the competition would now be broadcast by at least one radio station into that team's home city.

Full article at: http://afl.com.au/default.asp?pg=news&spg=display&articleid=303769

[one-eyed]

New radio deals ensure greater coverage
Stephen Rielly
The Age
October 20, 2006

Every match involving a Victorian-based club will be broadcast back into the state next season as part of the AFL's new radio-rights agreement.

The league announced three-year deals with four broadcasters yesterday, with the Melbourne-based sports station SEN being admitted for the first time to a market that has effectively been the province of the biggest mainstream stations: the ABC, Triple M and 3AW.

The deal provides the ABC with a minimum of five matches across Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and all public holidays, including early and twilight Sunday fixtures that will be introduced to the schedule next year.

Triple M and 3AW have been awarded four games a weekend into Melbourne across Friday evenings, Saturday afternoons, Saturday evenings, Sunday afternoons and all public holiday matches, while SEN is to broadcast five games a weekend into Melbourne, across Friday evenings, Saturday afternoons and evenings, early and twilight matches on Sundays and all public holiday matches.

In essence, the carve-up gives all four stations access to Friday night games. Triple M and 3AW have the pick of Saturday afternoon and evening games and shared rights to the marquee 2pm Sunday games; a tier-one package. The ABC and SEN will call, at the direction of the AFL if necessary, the games on Saturdays that 3AW and Triple M choose not to broadcast and share between themselves the early and late Sunday fixtures; a second-tier package. All four stations have rights to the finals.

This year there were 16 games played interstate involving Victorian teams that did not receive any radio coverage in Melbourne.

AFL chief operating officer Ben Buckley said every match of every team in the competition would now be broadcast into its home city. "It was vital for the AFL that supporters could access radio coverage of their team for every single match they play and this was the highest priority for the AFL in our negotiations with our partners and represents a major step forward for fans," Buckley said.

http://www.realfooty.theage.com.au/realfooty/articles/2006/10/19/1160851068990.html

[WilliamPowell]

SEN now has the AFL - this is good for the AFL but not very good for the VFL and NRL seeing SEN is the only radio station that covered those 2 codes

[mightytiges]

True WP.

It's probably wishful thinking but I'm hoping the new deal means we won't have to put up with the biased commentary of 5AA and 6PR anymore when we play interstate.

[one-eyed]

SEN enters the big league of game calling
Brad Newsome
The Age
October 26, 2006

SOME big football names are polishing up their vocal chords as sports-talk station 1116 SEN gets ready to broadcast AFL games for the first time next year.

Kevin Bartlett, Tim Watson, Billy Brownless, David Schwarz, Liam Pickering, Daniel Harford, Andrew Maher and Anthony Hudson are already on the team and station bosses are scouring for recruits to fill the positions opened up by the station's five-games-a-week deal.

"It certainly puts us in the big league," SEN group general manager Barrie Quick says. "The fact that we run a 24-7 sports format means that the AFL fits perfectly for us.

"Obviously it means an increase in ratings and an increase in revenue, and it just rounds out the station and it means our listeners don't have to leave us on the weekend to listen to the football."

As part of the three-year deal, under which SEN will also cover all finals (including the grand final), the pre-season competition and Brownlow Medal count, the AFL received share options that, if exercised, would give it a 4 to 5 per cent stake in the station.

Quick, however, is adamant that the AFL's potential shareholding will not affect the way games are called or the way football issues are presented or discussed on other programs.

"It doesn't give them a seat on the board and we'll retain our total independence," Quick says.

"I think that when people actually hear our calls they'll know that we're delivering a balanced view of the facts and even now that's what we're doing."

Quick also rejects suggestions that the new AFL radio regime, under which stations are paying significantly more for rights, has short-changed its country listeners by effectively relegating the ABC to a second tier of broadcasters without first pick of big matches.

Veteran ABC broadcaster Tim Lane wrote in The Age on Saturday that the AFL had relegated "thousands of Australians, particularly in remote areas, to second-class listener status", a criticism that Quick dismisses.

"I don't know how you can define what's the best game," Quick says. "If you're a Collingwood supporter and Collingwood's playing Port Adelaide, you'd probably say that's the best game."

Who calls what

3AW Four games a week across Friday night, Saturday afternoon, Saturday night, Sunday afternoon and all public holiday matches.

Triple M Four games a week across Friday night, Saturday afternoon, Saturday night, Sunday afternoon and all public holiday matches.

SEN 1116 Five games a week across Friday night, Saturday afternoon, Saturday night, early Sunday, Sunday twilight and all public holiday matches.

ABC Five games a week across Friday night, Saturday afternoon, Saturday night, early Sunday, Sunday twilight and all public holiday matches.

· 3AW and Triple M broadcast the first-choice game on Saturday and Saturday night, with SEN and ABC taking the second choice.

· On certain Saturdays when there is only one game in Melbourne, all four stations will call it.

· For the first time, all Victorian teams are guaranteed radio coverage in Melbourne when playing outside Victoria.

http://www.realfooty.theage.com.au/realfooty/articles/2006/10/25/1161749193388.html