AFL fan site accuses Seven of ‘blackflip’ over broadcasting grand final in HD
The Seven Network has been accused “backflipping” on a commitment made to an AFL fan pressure group to broadcast this year’s grand final on its high definition (HD) channel 7Mate.
AFL fan Josh Rowe, who runs the website “AFL in HD please” which boasts some 70,000 followers on its Twitter account, today published emails between himself and Seven Melbourne managing director Lewis Martin which appear to show that the TV network made a “confidential” commitment to broadcast the grand final on the higher quality broadcast channel.
In an email dated March 31, following a meeting between Rowe and Martin, the Seven Melbourne boss responds to a request for permission to announce that Seven will broadcast the grand final in HD by writing “re GF (grand final) this year that needs to remain confidential”.
The issue of major sporting codes not being broadcast in high definition by free-to-air channels has been an ongoing one for many armchair sports fans, with all of the primary channels (Seven, Nine and Ten) only broadcast in standard definition. Fox Sports has an HD channel for each of its four main channels, including Fox Footy, which does not have the rights to show the grand final.
“Television is stuck in the 70’s” : Tim Cook.
yes Tim, but here in Straya it’s closer to 1956
Great work Josh for calling out Lewis Martin.
Channel 7 has and continues to treat it’s viewers with contempt.
HD or SD> who cares!!
As long as we continue to get free sport!
– more focus should be on the anti-siphoning laws that Foxtel are trying to chage!
Another example of why the anti-syphoning rules are old and useless.
It should be on Fox Footy.
johnm: watch some NFL in HD on 7mate and you’ll see the difference in SD vs HD
C’mon footy in general
You can only laugh at the 4K TV advertisements boasting ‘amazing’ pictures of live sporting events… it over a decade since the introduction of HD and we’re still watching Grand Finals etc in crappy standard definition. It is beyond a joke.
A quick quiz for anyone out there running a television station – what do you think will draw more viewers to your network – a TV series about American rednecks running around in a swamp, or a High Definition broadcast of an Australian sporting institution?
If you have to think about that for more than 2 seconds then you really shouldn’t be running a television network…
The 2008 Olympics were broadcast in HD yet here we are, 6 years later, and Channel 7 are serving up the highest rating sporting event of the year in SD.
“Channel 7 – we love footy” – yeah right!
What about 3D – was brilliant the first year?
Boycott sounds good – sick of seeing the same faces at the GF anyway. Footy broadcasting has been mishandled for many years too. AFL should be at the forefront of broadcast technology. We should have HD and a remote camera selection; following players via GPS. We should have the option of editing our own feed instead of over zealous director/editors and we should have an option of director/editors promoted like DJs in a nightclub. This all could have been done several years ago but then accountants aren’t known for their imagination.
If Seven consistently refuse to broadcast finals in HD, then it might be time for the AFL to wake up and give the finals to Fox or another network.
Poor form – but have come to expect that from 7.
Can’t remember the last time I watched a game on 7 that was also on Fox Footy – while those games are still not HD I refuse to watch them on 7 out of principle as they’re the ones holding things up from the game coming into the modern era with televised coverage – pity we don’t get the option on the biggest day of the year.
Channel 7 need to really take heed here, there are a lot of people who feel very strongly about this, not just the 70,000 twitter followers. The true number would be ten fold. They’ve got a golden opportunity to turn this into a PR ‘win’ before the negativity around this gets massively amplified over the next 48 hours. It’s a cut and dry case of “Can we afford not to?”
10 comments and no-one caught the typo? for shame…
a “blackflip” sounds like some sort of non-PC skateboard trick. Tony Hawk’s Pro-Skater Nigeria, anyone?
Oh come on, the commercial reality is that if they simulcast the game on 7mate and 7, then this splits the ratings, meaning that the advertisers will pay less for the ads and it looks bad for them.
That’s what it comes down to. If you were at Channel Seven, what would you do? Unfortunately, probably the same. It’s their biggest rating show of the year (I assume) and they want those viewer figures to be one huge number.
As it happens, I’m in the UK at the moment, so will be able to watch it in HD, which I appreciate is a rather frustrating state of affairs. I absolutely don’t blame all the AFL fans for pushing for this, it’s utterly bizarre, but above is the reasoning.
and didn’t Nine’s David Gyngell make some grand statement on radio some months ago that they would show the NRL grand final in HD? How is that coming along?
I’m up for that boycott.
Up high for digital mavens like Josh Rowe, using knowledge and honesty to hold media douchebags accountable.
Down low, too slow Channel Seven. Way to make old audience metrics even less relevant
Anon,
Chanel 7 cares more about advertising revenue than AFL fans’ viewing experience.
Therefore, spend money with non-AFL sponsors and tell the AFL sponsors that you did via social media.
e.g. Tweet: Hey @carltondraught I just stocked up on @CoopersBrewery Pale Ale because @Channel7 won’t broadcast #AFLinHD for the #AFLGF
#7sportfail
This topic will dominate social, guaranteed.
In 2014, why aren’t the standard channels broadcasting in HD anyways? Seriously, whats stopping 7 broadcasting HD on their main channel all the time?
I sent a tweet to Dennis Cometti yesterday about this issue and he said he passed on my comments to seven’s head director of sport. We shall see what happens!
https://twitter.com/DennisCometti7/status/513916275752316928
Gav – they could put the exact same ads and vision on 7 and 7 mate and wouldn’t matter if it split the ratings. Doesn’t make any sense
Dave, short answer – Physics and greed…
Not enough bandwidth available for all broadcasters to simulcast their main channel in HD, and not enough market penetration of HD TVs to allow the switching off of their main SD channels.
When digital television was in the planning stages, the commercial networks lobbied hard to gobble up all the bandwidth to block new entrants (ie, Fairfax, Murdoch) by promising all kinds of televisual wonders and extra services – HD sport was just one of them. Fast forward 13 years and we now have twelve shopping channels and the handful of HD services available showing third-tier American cable shows and thirty year old repeats of Murder She Wrote.
Originally, when digital TV began, they did re-broadcast their main channel in HD, but quickly figured out they could make extra cash by having a whole different, extra channel, and GEM, 7Mate and One were born.
As for Gav’s comments – Ten recently blocked Family Feud across 10, 11 and One and the ratings were released as one number, thereby increasing the shows audience, not cutting onto it. There’s no reason why Seven (and Nine for NRL) couldn’t do the same.
Having the Grand Final in HD would attract extra viewers – certainly a lot more than some redneck reality show. It’s a really dumb decision and advertisers should be demanding a HD outlet for their expensive Grand Final ads.
HD, SD it’s all storm in a t-cup really. Is it really life changing? Obviously it seems to be, to some people! Hey there is life outside of AFL isn’t there?
I like this guy rowe his a bloody legend I for one won’t be watching afl on seven at all for that reason its not in hd everyones moved to digital only tv now and still seven won’t do it if seven won’t do it give the exclusive rights to fox footy
Yes its about time her HD.
And go one further 3D transmission.
Millions of 3D Tvs out there, the stations all have the equipment rotting away.
Why in hell can’t the stations provide entertainment in equal quality to Europe and the US and screw these cashed up Foxtel cronies who dictate what can and can’t be done
Everybody gone digital now and this has been going on for years I belive that if seven can’t do it exclusive rights should go to fox footy
Gav it doesn’t split the ratings at all, it oztam will just release a combined number as it is simulcast.
Ten did it recently with Family Feud to bump their numbers
Who’s the Sydney Swan? The mascot perhaps?
I’m pretty sure Channel 7 have simulcast the AFL Grand Final in HD before with the launch of 7MATE, I can’t see why they cant do it again and code the ratings combined?
Not that hard.
Is the game being broadcast delayed on Fox Footy in HD by chance?
If it is delayed by a few minutes, then you could boycot 7, watch in on 504 and just not check social media til full time?
That sends a message to Ch7 pretty quickly.
Hey @toyota, ive just stocked up on @holdens for the Grand Final. In your face @7sport.
@Steveo. Fox is not broadcasting the GF at all due to licensing agreements.
Simple, I won’t be watching this on tv until the replay on fox.
Yes we know that but they should be
Yeah I’ll be watching on fox till 230 then IM gonna listen to some music and keep up with the scores on the afl live app then I’ll watch the replay later
Its just hopeless. It seems bullshit to me seeing as how most of the AFL in Brisbane is aired on 7mate throughout the season. At least be thankful you don’t live in Qld where the main FTA TV stations show almost all summer sport on one hour delay as of next week (Daylight Savings). Their kicker? “This is what most of our audience like”. What rot. And we get six months of this.
Nice work calling Seven out, so long as it’s ‘free’, I’m very happy!
Unless you have a 2 metre wide TV, or Superman vision, you can’t tell the difference. Virtually all “HD” is just upscaled SD, they blur the picture and then sharpen it in realtime.
I am so disgusted, angry & fed up with the commentary on AFL matches this season, in the past & hopefully not in the future? Bruce Mcavaney & Dennis Commetti STOP the “americanism” when calling our great game! Why do these two especially say “quarterback” & “guys”. I reckon our footballers are genuine aussie blokes running around on the field belting each other on opposite teams to play this great iconic indigenous home grown game (the best football in the world) which is unique. I feel proud to showcase this wonderful, beautiful football to the whole world. I hope people who view our great game are not thinking they are watching some american crap & listerning to aussie commentators trying to sound like “yanks”. Come on Mcavaney Commetti & others, when calling great AUSSIE football, don’t spoil it, be AUSTRALIAN & sound AUSTRTALIAN!!!!!!!!!!!
Monty, I know what you mean. Last season Bruce McAvaney was talking about “fourth down conversion”, “fair catch kick”, and “automatic first down” during the Suns versus Eagles game. I had no idea what he was talking about until a flatmate from Canada told me they were Gridiron terms. Flabbergasted, I turned off the television and turned on the radio commentary instead.