The Premier League has fired the starting gun in the highly anticipated race for its lucrative domestic broadcast rights for the three seasons from 2013-14 to 2015-16, reports SportBusiness. The invitation to tender (ITT) document includes the addition of an extra package of live rights, with live rights to a total of 154 matches being split into seven packages, while a free-to-air highlights package will include 'catch-up' rights.
The live rights consist of five packages of 26 matches and two packages of 12 matches. No single buyer will be allowed to acquire more than 116 matches.
The Premier League said in a statement: "This creates a more attractive and compelling offering for both broadcasters and fans; whilst allowing the continued protection of the Saturday 3pm 'closed window' and minimising further displacement of Premier League fixtures."
The current agreement encompassing the three seasons ending with the 2012-13 campaign involved the rights being sold in six packages of 23 matches with no single broadcaster allowed to purchase all six. In the last auction process, BSkyB won five packages of live rights for 115 live matches per season, while ESPN secured one package of 23 games. All six packages were sold for a total of £1.78 billion.
ESPN will bid "aggressively" in the forthcoming auction, according to the company's managing director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Ross Hair, who said that ESPN wanted to secure more games in the next cycle of rights.
The new tender will also include two 'near live' long form packages each containing 226 matches; one for linear and the other for on-demand exploitation. An Internet-based clips package for all 380 matches will also be included with both packages available for exploitation on a technology neutral basis.
The new bidding process throws open the prospect of a possible new player in the shape of Al-Jazeera, which has positioned itself as the dominant force in the French football market in the past year.
