Premium TV in New Media Rights Deal with World Rally Championship
Motor racing -
21 Dec 2004
Premium TV, the broadband and mobile sports and entertainment content business, has signed a deal with International Sportsworld Communicators (ISC) to co-exploit the new media rights for FIA World Rally Championship (WRC). The deal will focus on maximising the new media platform for WRC and its users via the creation of new WRC broadband, mobile and commercial website products.
The agreement marks a new dawn for Premium TV as it accelerates its business beyond UK football to the global sports and entertainment stage. Together Premium TV and ISC will develop a global distribution strategy to enable the delivery of a content-rich multimedia WRC showcase including the creation of broadband and mobile products.
As part of the partnership, Premium TV will revamp the existing WRC.com website, build a new broadband subscription website and develop new mobile phone products aimed at WRC's global core audience of 800 million TV viewers and its millions of event spectators. The website and products will launch in January 2005 in English and French, with further international language versions set to roll out throughout the year.
The new broadband subscription service, called WRC+, will feature video stage highlights, driver interviews, exclusive in-car footage, virtual spectator coverage, real-time results, live streamed audio of all rallies, plus a searchable video archive of classic rally action.
The WRC+ mobile content offering features video footage of stage highlights and exclusive tailor-made driver interviews to be sold territory-by-territory. Other mobile products under development include a news and results SMS service, wallpapers and subscription service for GPRS / 3G-enabled handsets.
WRC+ will launch on 20 January in time for the Monte Carlo Rally and will be priced at £39.99 (?59.99) a year. It will be marketed through WRC-owned channels such as www.wrc.com and cross promoted through WRC TV programmes.
Additionally, Premium TV will create a number of exclusive advertising opportunities that will sit across WRC.com offering brands the opportunity to partner with a major global franchise. The website already attracts more than ten million page views per month and has the potential for significant further growth.
Rod Henwood, Premium TV chief executive, said: 'This deal marks the first step in Premium TV's post-turnaround expansion strategy. WRC is a global sports entertainment franchise that rightly has its eye on broadband as a key future broadcast delivery system to millions of fans. Motorsport is perfect for broadband and mobile platforms thanks to its passionate international following.'
Simon Long, ISC chief executive, said: 'I am delighted about this ground-breaking agreement with Premium TV. It gives us the opportunity to establish the internet at the heart of how we deliver a range of exciting and engaging content to our millions of WRC fans around the world. With the growing use of technology in people's daily lives and the dynamic communication environment offered by the internet, broadband and mobile, this represents a significant step forward in the way we can communicate the
multi-dimensional appeal of the FIA World Rally Championship. This partnership with Premium TV will offer ISC and our sporting and commercial partners a unique opportunity to interact with a growing WRC fan base hungry
for WRC news, content and entertainment.'
WRC is the world's fastest growing motorsport. Each year the WRC hosts 16 events around the globe that pitch man and machine against environments as diverse as the frozen north of Sweden and the searing heat of Cyprus. More than eight million spectators attend the events worldwide and the Championship has an international TV audience fast approaching the one billion mark. From January to November the WRC tours include Monte Carlo, Sweden, Argentina, Great Britain and Mexico before finishing in Australia.
For more information contact Mark Terry-Lush at Premium TV on +44 (0)1452 760 147 or email mark@renegademedia.net.
Or
Felipe McGough at WRC on +44 (0)20 7584 7584 or email fmcgough@iscrally.com.
The agreement marks a new dawn for Premium TV as it accelerates its business beyond UK football to the global sports and entertainment stage. Together Premium TV and ISC will develop a global distribution strategy to enable the delivery of a content-rich multimedia WRC showcase including the creation of broadband and mobile products.
As part of the partnership, Premium TV will revamp the existing WRC.com website, build a new broadband subscription website and develop new mobile phone products aimed at WRC's global core audience of 800 million TV viewers and its millions of event spectators. The website and products will launch in January 2005 in English and French, with further international language versions set to roll out throughout the year.
The new broadband subscription service, called WRC+, will feature video stage highlights, driver interviews, exclusive in-car footage, virtual spectator coverage, real-time results, live streamed audio of all rallies, plus a searchable video archive of classic rally action.
The WRC+ mobile content offering features video footage of stage highlights and exclusive tailor-made driver interviews to be sold territory-by-territory. Other mobile products under development include a news and results SMS service, wallpapers and subscription service for GPRS / 3G-enabled handsets.
WRC+ will launch on 20 January in time for the Monte Carlo Rally and will be priced at £39.99 (?59.99) a year. It will be marketed through WRC-owned channels such as www.wrc.com and cross promoted through WRC TV programmes.
Additionally, Premium TV will create a number of exclusive advertising opportunities that will sit across WRC.com offering brands the opportunity to partner with a major global franchise. The website already attracts more than ten million page views per month and has the potential for significant further growth.
Rod Henwood, Premium TV chief executive, said: 'This deal marks the first step in Premium TV's post-turnaround expansion strategy. WRC is a global sports entertainment franchise that rightly has its eye on broadband as a key future broadcast delivery system to millions of fans. Motorsport is perfect for broadband and mobile platforms thanks to its passionate international following.'
Simon Long, ISC chief executive, said: 'I am delighted about this ground-breaking agreement with Premium TV. It gives us the opportunity to establish the internet at the heart of how we deliver a range of exciting and engaging content to our millions of WRC fans around the world. With the growing use of technology in people's daily lives and the dynamic communication environment offered by the internet, broadband and mobile, this represents a significant step forward in the way we can communicate the
multi-dimensional appeal of the FIA World Rally Championship. This partnership with Premium TV will offer ISC and our sporting and commercial partners a unique opportunity to interact with a growing WRC fan base hungry
for WRC news, content and entertainment.'
WRC is the world's fastest growing motorsport. Each year the WRC hosts 16 events around the globe that pitch man and machine against environments as diverse as the frozen north of Sweden and the searing heat of Cyprus. More than eight million spectators attend the events worldwide and the Championship has an international TV audience fast approaching the one billion mark. From January to November the WRC tours include Monte Carlo, Sweden, Argentina, Great Britain and Mexico before finishing in Australia.
For more information contact Mark Terry-Lush at Premium TV on +44 (0)1452 760 147 or email mark@renegademedia.net.
Or
Felipe McGough at WRC on +44 (0)20 7584 7584 or email fmcgough@iscrally.com.