Streaming Cycling in UK - Discovery+ prices!

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misforturob

Well-Known Member
IMO, WBD have already begun the process of removing road cycling from TNT sport.
Last week, the TDU was only available to stream. This weekend there are half a dozen live events that would normally be shown on tv channels via Eurosport. TNT have only one scheduled live coverage (Mallorca) on Sunday.
That’s already a noticeable step back from last year.

I hate to break it to y'all, but in the not too distant future streaming will be TV and TV will be streaming.
 

Blazing Saddles

Über Member
I hate to break it to y'all, but in the not too distant future streaming will be TV and TV will be streaming.

Yes, it’s hard to dispute that. I stream most things. It’s not about that, simply whether road cycling will remain on the TNT platform, or gradually be phased out. Bottom line is that I don’t think they are picking up the numbers of casual viewers they had expected.
Hence I think that they will shortly look to offload.
 

katiewlx

Well-Known Member
Yes, it’s hard to dispute that. I stream most things. It’s not about that, simply whether road cycling will remain on the TNT platform, or gradually be phased out. Bottom line is that I don’t think they are picking up the numbers of casual viewers they had expected.
Hence I think that they will shortly look to offload.

with all due respect to the recent races, I doubt the casual viewer cares for them at all, Eurosport might well have shown them back in the day and had next to no-one watching either, but if youve been watching TNT this month, its been wall to wall Australian open, intermixed with wall to wall football, intermixed with a whole bunch of winter sports as we're only a week away from the Winter Olympics, which they hold the rights to of course so are trying to drum up interest in, and also a bunch of rugby, UFC and cricket.

theres not alot of room for cycling in that schedule with 4 channels, so everything else they have gets dumped to streaming, and theres probably very little call back to the streaming replays beyond a week, and there is a whole issue they have and all streaming services will have is simply the cost of storing the stuff forever, and the cost of delivering the stuff over a network.

and the rights holders maybe getting harder to negotiate on those terms in that they recognise streaming and the retention part is where they could ask for more money in a broadcast deal, instead of just a minimum of you can watch it live and replay it for a week and its gone.
 

geocycle

Legendary Member
That isn't what he meant when he said only available streaming. He meant no highlighhts shows were avaiable, only live streaming.

I use the Discovery app and there have only been a very few highlights packages of recent races. Instead you have to make use of the fast forward button through the full race. To be fair a highlights show of the Tour down under would have been quite short….
 

Blazing Saddles

Über Member
So, we are in general agreement that coverage is being trimmed back?
GP Marseilles shown for the last several years, gone. Etoile de Besseges gone, Valencia live coverage cut back.
The only race being shown by TNTs linear channels to avoid cuts is the woman’s race. Quelle surprise.


(I get the Aussie tennis reference, but Eurosport managed better coverage with half the channels.)
 

katiewlx

Well-Known Member
So, we are in general agreement that coverage is being trimmed back?
GP Marseilles shown for the last several years, gone. Etoile de Besseges gone, Valencia live coverage cut back.
The only race being shown by TNTs linear channels to avoid cuts is the woman’s race. Quelle surprise.


(I get the Aussie tennis reference, but Eurosport managed better coverage with half the channels.)


we dont know what the deals are with these smaller races, I dont think theyre cutting back so much as just prioritising what they air, cycling to them isnt about these early season races, as lets face it none of the big names are racing in them, and even if you are a fan of pro cycling, theyre quite tedious to watch as races go.

and Eurosport may well have managed better coverage, but thats not really the debate, they had different priorities and approached the whole thing about sport coverage very differently to how TNT want to do it, who are more focused on the premiumisation of it.
 

mjr

Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
we dont know what the deals are with these smaller races, I dont think theyre cutting back so much as just prioritising what they air, cycling to them isnt about these early season races, as lets face it none of the big names are racing in them, and even if you are a fan of pro cycling, theyre quite tedious to watch as races go.

and Eurosport may well have managed better coverage, but thats not really the debate, they had different priorities and approached the whole thing about sport coverage very differently to how TNT want to do it, who are more focused on the premiumisation of it.
If they're not going to show them, they should forfeit the rights.
 

Pblakeney

Über Member
we dont know what the deals are with these smaller races, I dont think theyre cutting back so much as just prioritising what they air, cycling to them isnt about these early season races, as lets face it none of the big names are racing in them, and even if you are a fan of pro cycling, theyre quite tedious to watch as races go.

and Eurosport may well have managed better coverage, but thats not really the debate, they had different priorities and approached the whole thing about sport coverage very differently to how TNT want to do it, who are more focused on the premiumisation of it.

In summary, TNT are interested in money, not cycling.
Whereas we are interested in cycling, not the sports that make TNT money. TNT will lose us as customers, and won't care.
 

stage hunter

Active Member
Some of it was on TNT Sports 10 on Sky, but not all.

inrng posted that it's still undecided who gets the RCS TV rights for this year and Strade Bianchi is less than 40 days away.

Last time Flanders classics was out of contract Eurosport signed about 48 hours before Omloop. 2022?
 
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stage hunter

Active Member
So, we are in general agreement that coverage is being trimmed back?
GP Marseilles shown for the last several years, gone. Etoile de Besseges gone, Valencia live coverage cut back.
The only race being shown by TNTs linear channels to avoid cuts is the woman’s race. Quelle surprise.


(I get the Aussie tennis reference, but Eurosport managed better coverage with half the channels.)

I can see both those races available. So hard disagree.
 
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