PREMIER LEAGUE chiefs are working on a streaming service that would net billions in extra cash.
New CEO Richard Masters said the Netflix-style ‘Over The Top’ offering could be ready for testing as early as 2022.
Richard Masters is the man behind the plans to offer a direct service to fansCredit: Getty Images – Getty
The plan is to cut out broadcasters, who currently bid for TV rights, and take control of the distribution in-house in an effort to increase revenue.
Masters said: “During the last [rights bidding] process [for the 2019-22 seasons] we spent quite a lot of time and invested a lot of resources in building our expertise and capacity in ‘direct-to-consumer’.
“We considered whether strategically it would be the right time to test a few markets then and decided not to.
“We were ready last time and we will be ready next time should the opportunity arise.
“Eventually the Premier League will move to a mix of direct-to-consumer and [traditional] media rights sales.”
The move would also help fans who are forced to subscribe to Sky, BT Sport and Amazon Prime if they want to watch every televised game legally.
Those who do so would likely face an annual bill of over £900 – a huge ask for hard-up supporters.
SunSport columnist Simon Jordan has spoken about the lost opportunities of the current deal – and revealed he has recommended a streaming service.
He told talkSPORT: “The challenges in football are so engaging and so interesting. In my view, the Premier League has the opportunity to become a broadcaster in its own right and dwarf the revenues it currently gets.
“If you look at the NFL, which is perceived as a super sports league, an average NFL team gets $255million – around £200m.
“The average English Premier League club gets around £120m.
“The opportunity for the Premier League is exhilarating and exciting for whoever wants to come and do this job.
“But they’ve got people like Bruce Buck heading it up who are part of the so-called ‘Big Six’ who have got their own agenda and these people turning down the job will be lobbied by the ‘Big Six’.
“I’ve spoken about the Premier League becoming the ‘Netflix of football’, ie, the video on demand platform that controls its own product.
“If you had 100 million subscribers on ‘Premier League TV’ like with Netflix at £8 a month, you’d be bringing in £10bn a year, not £8.7bn every three years like the current deal does.
“This is the most exciting, exhilarating job you could have in sport so why no one wants it is beyond me.
“Football’s got to own its own outcome and build its own platform and by becoming the Netflix of football you control your own destiny.”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
