The decision to allow a pay-TV service to have a monopoly of some World Cup matches via the Optus communications satellites has come back to bite the Australian government. Apart from being unpopular in the first place – most nations have all the matches on free-to-air TV stations – the Optus system found that it could not keep up with demand – with customers complaining of frequent dropouts in the live streaming service. This has led to an order by Australia’s Prime Minister Malcom Turnbull for Optus to let the free-to-air SBS television service to show all FIFA World Cup games – initially for a 48 hour period – but which is likely to be extended.
England Captain Harry Kane celebrates during England’s 2-1 victory over Tunisia. Courtesy: FIFA World Cup
Comment by David Todd: This is one thing that really rankles with this writer. When national or major sporting occasions which used to be free to watch are monetised by greedy pay-TV services – who then cannot deliver!
