That Six Nations rugby is on the move from 2018 is a reflection of the deepening pockets at TV3, which is in the process of being bought by media giant Liberty Global. But the switch away from RTÉ is also a consequence of three words that have haunted broadcasters in recent years. They are "sports rights" and "inflation".
RTÉ’s loss of English Premier League highlights in 2013 was merely an early indicator of its inability to compete in this expensive new world. Yesterday its statement on the loss of Six Nations rights mentioned its “long and proud tradition” of showing the tournament, and putting our heart and soul into our coverage”. When it comes to sports rights auctions, heart and soul are not recognised currency.
While the price paid by TV3 is a closely guarded secret, it will have been high enough for RTÉ to have had to either cut a service or large swathes of content from its schedules in order to exceed its bid.
It is not the only public service broadcaster struggling to pay for prime sporting content. In June, the BBC lost its rights to the Olympic Games from 2022 to Eurosport-owner Discovery, which signed a pan-European deal that kicks in from 2018 in countries other than the United Kingdom and France.
More recently, the BBC and ITV made a successful joint bid for the UK rights to Six Nations matches from next year. The BBC, no longer able to afford to go it alone, united with its commercial rival to shut out a threat from pay-per-view operator Sky. Rugby fans horrified by the prospect of TV3 getting its clutches on the Six Nations might want to bear in mind that – unlike the Olympic Games – live coverage of Six Nations is not currently designated under broadcasting legislation as one of the major events that must be shown on a free-to-air channel.
Yesterday Minister for Communications Alex White, welcoming the TV3 announcement, said he had "yet to decide" whether to redesignate the Irish games in the tournament so that their live broadcast must be free to air.
So under the existing rules, the rights could very easily have gone to a pay-TV company more interested in swelling its subscriber base than garnering a mass audience.
The bruised RTÉ has just two more years of Six Nations. It continues to be the main broadcaster of soccer and GAA and it may well continue Olympic coverage from 2018 if it agrees a sub-licensing deal with Discovery. But it has dropped the ball on rugby as a result of a smart tackle from TV3.
