Media
Report: ITV, NTL team for Premiership bid
Published Wednesday, Oct 12 2005, 13:39 BST | By Neil Wilkes
ITV and NTL are joining forces in an effort to steal some of the Premiership TV rights away from Sky, The Guardian reported today.
The pair's respective chief execs, Charles Allen and Simon Duffy, have inked a joint letter to the league's twenty constituent clubs outlining their proposals.
Sky currently holds the exclusive rights to broadcast Premiership games under a £340m-a-year contract but looks set to lose at least 50% of the matches because of a new European Commission ruling.
ITV and NTL are thought to be offering "at least" £170m-a-year for half of the rights from the 2007 season. Most of the games would air on a new NTL-run subscription channel, with the rest appearing for free on one of ITV's digital stations.
The Premier League, who is opposing the new 50% rule, is due to hold critical talks with the Commission next week.
The pair's respective chief execs, Charles Allen and Simon Duffy, have inked a joint letter to the league's twenty constituent clubs outlining their proposals.
Sky currently holds the exclusive rights to broadcast Premiership games under a £340m-a-year contract but looks set to lose at least 50% of the matches because of a new European Commission ruling.
ITV and NTL are thought to be offering "at least" £170m-a-year for half of the rights from the 2007 season. Most of the games would air on a new NTL-run subscription channel, with the rest appearing for free on one of ITV's digital stations.
The Premier League, who is opposing the new 50% rule, is due to hold critical talks with the Commission next week.
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