h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4975632.stm

Just when I'm taking an interest for the very first in the output offered by Sky, I find that the monopoly has been broken and that one-third of the games are now going to be shown by an Irish pay-TV broadcaster.

Question: how does the break in this monopoly benefit the customer?

At first sight it looks like one is going to have to deal with two suppliers if one wants access to all of the live Premiership matches. And it's also not as if there is an opening up of the market, as both suppliers will have exclusive rights to the games that they're broadcasting. In effect what happens is that one monopoly supplier is being replaced by two monopoly suppliers for two mutually exclusive halves of the marketplace.

Question: will this mean that customers will have to pay twice for something that in previous years they only needed to pay for once?

I expect so. Yes.

Actually the EU ordered the FA to establish equal deals so that multiple bidding could take place.

As can be seen the deals are totally unequal, and as SKY has got package A and B they effectively have the majority of the live games. It remains to be seen what the EU and the monopolies commission make of the deals....

Oh - and as regards paying twice - SKY sells onto other broadcasters already ntl for example, I assume they would arrange a mutual exchange rate with other suppliers, so they could sell on the full package. A deal where other broadcasters could buy from each supplier piecemeal would mean that SKY would pay less, because they couldn't make as much.

That would mean the Premier league got less - and that might force people into the real world - and that couldn't happen.

Well my is that Sky will concoct a deal with Setana whereby setana effectivly replace what is currently the PPV "Premiership plus", whilst Sky shows games by subscription on Sky Sports.

All this means for consumers if you ask me is that we will have to pay even more so that Premiership footballers lead ever more extravagant lifestyles.

Hmmmm.... might have to thriow myself back into sunday league.

As long as I can still watch Jeff Stelling & Co all Saturday afternoon, I'm happy.

B

Who's Jeff Stelling?

Philistine.

B

Jeff is a strange name for a Jordanian to have.

Well, given a choice to spend an extravagant amount on Sky/Sentana packages or watch football at the ground/in the pub, I think I know what I'd rather do.

>>Jeff is a strange name for a Jordanian to have.<<

Indeed, Kate or Peter is far more normal