TV Wars - It's Over

[La Mer]

The tv racing wars between TVN & Sky are over with a settlement being reached between the war generals in their various bunkers.

Sky within the next 48 hours will once agains start to show Sydney & Victorian racing, while TVN will start to show selected interstate races.

Sky will pay TVN something like $300 million over the next six years plus an immediate payment of $15 million.

TVN will be available to all pay tv subscribers, inlcuding Optus.

Why did it take so long to reach a settlement? Ego's, BIG ego's maybe.

[Sportz]

Yep. And nobody wanted to admit they were wrong.

[Sportz]

The answer was so damn obvious all along!!!

There should always have been one channel (Sky) with ALL racing, and another channel (TVN) concentrating ONLY on the major gallops racing.

[the freek]

Does this mean I just changed to digital on my austar, so I could get TVN for nothing?

[crash]

The outcome took some time because the agreed too terms by all parties is actually quite complex and involved substantial negotiations. I read it all in the business section of yesterdays Age but I won't bore you with the details.

There is about 10 deals in the outcome covering many parties. What happens now and more importantly for those involved, what will [probably] happen in the future and who is entitled to do what, is the reason it all took so long.