What do you want in a RA Streaming Service

[RedsHappy]

Yeah if I could watch Six Nations, Top 14, Premiership, Top League I'd be a very happy man happy to part with sizeable dollar.

If we build _the_ dominant Aust rugby streaming platform the potential to do distribution deals with these rights' owners is absolutely real and achievable.

And as someone else here rightly said: that 'multi event' rugby platform allows variegated price packages for different content mixes. And these could be offered 'on the fly, add and subtract virtually at whim'.

 

[liquor box]

Only $10/month would likely not enough to make such a platform viable.

Not if this was the only income for broadcasting.

I would propose that RA produce all games and then on sell them to free to air and if there is no interest then to pay tv.

This revenue would subsidise the streaming platform that would have other content available. Free to Air or pay TV would be limited to only broadcasting the match itself.

 

[dru]

Not if this was the only income for broadcasting.

I would propose that RA produce all games and then on sell them to free to air and if there is no interest then to pay tv.

This revenue would subsidise the streaming platform that would have other content available. Free to Air or pay TV would be limited to only broadcasting the match itself.

Clearly they would need to chase sponsorship and advertising.

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

Clearly they would need to chase sponsorship and advertising.

I guess they could offer two tiers of subscription. One with and one without advertising.

 

[D-Box]

Could also look at a partnership with a telco like Testra and NRL/AFL.

Might give Optus more content at a lower cost but no exclusivity. Could lead to some rugby fans jumping ship if they get access to streamed games on a phone for free

 

[Brumbieman]

If RA just told other broadcasters to bugger off and set up their own stream direct from the website - all money going direct to RA i'd pay $50 - $100 eaaasily.

I'd want all club rugby, NRC, Super Rugby and tests though.

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

If RA just told other broadcasters to bugger off and set up their own stream direct from the website - all money going direct to RA i'd pay $50 - $100 eaaasily.

I'd want all club rugby, NRC, Super Rugby and tests though.

They'd have to make it available across a number of devices. Likely as a PWA. But it's not an impossible task to covert part of their current site into a streaming platform. The key will be adding value to those streams in the form of aforementioned pod/vodcasts, stats, AR etc. Particularly if they are going to simulcast Wallabies games on the platform and fta.

What will be needed is a very well planned and executed marketing campaign in order to maximise interest both here and abroad. If the data presented in the article not so long ago suggesting their are 3m Rugby fans in Aus (which is more than I would have thought) then we need to see a campaign aiming to get at least 10% of those subscribed to the platform.

 

[RedsHappy]

I guess they could offer two tiers of subscription. One with and one without advertising.

Top idea.

 

[RedsHappy]

Could also look at a partnership with a telco like Testra and NRL/AFL.

Might give Optus more content at a lower cost but no exclusivity. Could lead to some rugby fans jumping ship if they get access to streamed games on a phone for free

100%. This is the innate beauty of (a) the streaming model and (b) RA producing all the content itself (barring any they added as a supplement for non-Aussie rugby) and then being able to stratify the product delivery and packaging by:

- advertising or not (as WCR said astutely above)
- form of distribution (FTA, Pay TV, mobile platforms)
- Aussie only or Aussie plus XXX non-Aussie rugby of different types
- category of game (Tests only, or Tests ++, or Wallaby Tests only)
- press a button or key for commentated or ref mike only (haha, I'd pay extra for the latter!)
- etc etc

This is how you maximise/optimise revenue from the self-originated and controlled production!

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

Top idea.

It's the model employed by Hulu in the US.

 

[RedsHappy]

It's the model employed by Hulu in the US.

And btw, as a business model, how Spotify got going

 

[Brumbieman]

Yup - RA set up a streaming of all games - live and on demand. No middle man broadcaster rights, just anyone who wants to watch rugby pays for it - If a million (very doable with the number of kiwis and expat saffers supplementing our own market) people payed 50-100 a year to be able to watch club, NRC, Super Rugby and test (with PPV option for overseas rugby) that's a shitload of revenue to pump directly into the game.

Some 3rd year uni students could get it up and running (the actual camera work is subcontracted anyway), then you just need some presenters/commentators etc and other content (eg footy show type stuff). I'd even crowdsource that - just let people submit their commentary or match analysis (eg Squidge rugby) efforts and offer jobs to the best of them/get each of the clubs to get people to have a crack at it and work upwards. It'd be fantastic marketing for the game too and a great way to get ground roots involved.

Ideally, Aus and NZ work together on it as a joint venture so all TT rugby is available.

 

[KOB1987]

I just fired up my Kayo account - not because I want to watch league, it's for my son as he's had an operation and will be home schooled until late July - and there's a heap of Rugby docos on there I didn't know existed. We've spent the day watching the '13 Lions tour, the Gold Brigade, and the first 3 episodes in the series 'The Story Of Rugby'. It's been very entertaining and there is a heap more yet to watch.

Point being, include all those things and every game thinkable on a dedicated rugby only channel/platform and I will be a very happy person.

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

Yup - RA set up a streaming of all games - live and on demand. No middle man broadcaster rights, just anyone who wants to watch rugby pays for it - If a million (very doable with the number of kiwis and expat saffers supplementing our own market) people payed 50-100 a year to be able to watch club, NRC, Super Rugby and test (with PPV option for overseas rugby) that's a shitload of revenue to pump directly into the game.

Some 3rd year uni students could get it up and running (the actual camera work is subcontracted anyway), then you just need some presenters/commentators etc and other content (eg footy show type stuff). I'd even crowdsource that - just let people submit their commentary or match analysis (eg Squidge rugby) efforts and offer jobs to the best of them/get each of the clubs to get people to have a crack at it and work upwards. It'd be fantastic marketing for the game too and a great way to get ground roots involved.

Ideally, Aus and NZ work together on it as a joint venture so all TT rugby is available.

The goal should be to secure a monthly subscription fee that delivers somewhere between $100-200/ subscriber. Be it via subscription and advertising or a subscription alone.

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

I just fired up my Kayo account - not because I want to watch league, it's for my son as he's had an operation and will be home schooled until late July - and there's a heap of Rugby docos on there I didn't know existed. We've spent the day watching the '13 Lions tour, the Gold Brigade, and the first 3 episodes in the series 'The Story Of Rugby'. It's been very entertaining and there is a heap more yet to watch.

Point being, include all those things and every game thinkable on a dedicated rugby only channel/platform and I will be a very happy person.

You could do dedicated pre-season and then in season doco styled content on each team. Bring the viewer on the journey from the first day of preseason training, through the highs and lows and the end of the season. Add in other little bits and pieces. Like updates and stats on Aussies overseas etc.

 

[Finsbury Girl]

no option for NOT 720p broadcast....

 

[RedsHappy]

no option for NOT 720p broadcast..

With the latest generation of pro broadcast video cameras, smaller, better, cheaper, there's no reason why everything streamed live from 2021 could not be in 4k and downsized for 1080p for those not able or interested in 4k. 4k costs more in transmittal bandwidth and distribution servers, but it's not vast. (Of course, at home you ideally need the NBN 50 mbps plan or better to reliably stream 4k.)

On a decent 65"+ 4k TV 4k makes a remarkable difference in 'perceived reality' of a sports broadcast. And meanwhile 4K TVs have dramatically fallen in price and continue to do so.

With all the News Corp/Foxtel haters here yearning earlier in 2020 for Optus to take over pro rugby broadcasting, it was a much passed-over fact that Optus Sports only broadcasts its EPL etc in 720p and this looks very ordinary indeed for sports on larger screen TV even when artificially upscaled to 1080p.

 

[Pfitzy]

(Of course, at home you ideally need the NBN 50 mbps plan or better to reliably stream 4k.)

Immediately ruling out the majority of the population.

That said, the equipment might as well be 4K because we're not going back any time soon.

 

[RedsHappy]

Immediately ruling out the majority of the population.

That said, the equipment might as well be 4K because we're not going back any time soon.

Well Pfitzy get your point but the latest NBN data is quite encouraging in this regard - it's been widely reported that 68% of existing NBN customers and 80% of new ones are taking up the NBN 50 mbps plans or higher. (eg see https://www.miragenews.com/nbn-deli...eding-rollout-revenue-and-activation-targets/). COVID WFH has pushed this trend forward of course.

Really a lesser plan than 50mbps, eg the 25 plan, is OK for 4k provided one's home is not using more than c.2 devices simultaneously and only one is steaming 4K.

Yes, 4k is not going backwards, you're right. NHK in Japan is running trial 8K broadcasts (bandwidth required is huge). The new big 8K TVs you can buy today are breathtaking even when upscaling 4K content, which they do superbly.

 

[Juan Cote]

It would be great if you could order selected matches (Heiny Cup final) for a one off payment similar to the Fox Main-Event channel for the UFC and Boxing or buy a bundle of games such as 6N.

I'm assuming this would be possible?