Sky free-channel idea 'hostile'

SkyTV is looking at launching a free channel across the bows of rival broadcasters, a move described yesterday as "a really hostile act".

The pay-television network said yesterday that setting up a free channel was one of several options it had considered, primarily as a vehicle to re-screen sports matches after broadcasting these live to subscribers.

TV3 now pays SkyTV for rights to re-screen rugby and golf, and Prime buys its second-hand league and cricket from the same source.

By retaining rights to re-broadcast the matches itself, SkyTV would cause a ruckus among its existing free-to-air partners and could lock Television New Zealand out of contention to screen matches.

But SkyTV communications director Tony O'Brien acknowledged that a free channel could also provide an opportunity to screen some "first-run product" to supplement second-hand sports coverage.

Christchurch School of Broadcasting head Paul Norris, a former senior TVNZ executive, said any such channel would cause a storm in an already highly competitive market. "This is a really hostile act towards free-to-air broadcasters."

Mr O'Brien would offer no more details about an idea which he said was still at the conceptual stage, such as whether SkyTV may convert one of its pay channel to free-to-air, or even buy a channel from a rival.

Prime and TV3 officials were either unavailable or unwilling to confirm a suggestion in the Dominion Post that SkyTV may have one of their channels in its sights.

TVNZ spokesman Richard Griffin said SkyTV had approached the state broadcaster about the possible acquisition of unused frequencies, but this had been an informal discussion about long-term prospects for potentially leasable satellite space.

"There is nothing of any consequence in the wind as far as we are concerned."

He said TVNZ's relationship with SkyTV remained "constructive and affable", but he admitted his organisation was surprised to learn the pay network was considering a free-to-air channel.

"They haven't been very clear as to what they want, but whatever it is they are thinking about doing, if they are doing it on a free-to-air basis we are just a bit nonplussed as to why they would want to.

"I just can't understand when you've got a good business like Sky's, why you would be interested in doing something free-to-air on a stand- alone channel - but it's their business."

But Mr Norris said that aside from attracting extra advertising revenue, such a proposal might make good business sense as a way of promoting subscriber channels by dangling "morsels" before viewers on a free frequency.

South Africa's Mnet Television has for some time offered free viewing of large portions of rugby games, only to tantalise viewers by interrupting transmission and switching the concluding play and final match results to subscriber-only decoders.