Rugby Free to Air

[Main Street]

The HC tv money is around €2 or  €3m?  split between the Irfu and the provincial teams.

The predicted loss by the IRFU is actully €12-€15m per year - the money goes directly to the IRFU not the provinces. They have a long term debt now with the Stadium but it's envisaged that within three years of cost-cutting and re-structuring and revenues generated fiom the stadia they'll be in a far healthier position going forward. The satdium debts will not cleared in 3 years, I shouldn't have stated that but I am jet-lagged so that's my excuse.

So bottom line is the IRFU need the PPV money, they have set themselves a goal of I think 3 years to have all stadium debt cleared I wouldn't be surprised if some compromise is reached and the HEC cup becomes FTA in 3/4 years.

That sounds very confused.
The HC tv money is around €2 or  €3m?  split between the Irfu and the provincial teams.
That would hardly pay for a set of new blazers let alone be something the IRFU depend upon to pay stadium debt.
The HC tv money is valuable to the provinces.

The IRFU have been moaning about the implications of the threat of the 6 nations being A listed for FTA. Currently RTE are 1 year into a 3 year contract, the BBC have a 6 year contract. What is the problem?  Where do the IRFU get their predictions of armageddon from?

Anyway we are a nation of event junkies and don't see why we should have to cater for the potatoe junkies of our nation many who wouldn't walk 1 mile to watch any of their local teams in action beit football, hurling, soccer or rugby.

I have to say, that is representative of a typical arrogant rugby moronic attitude to the good people of Ireland. 

What is arrogant or moronic about that statement? How many people attended Meath's first Championship game yet if they play the Dubs in a Leinster semi-final they'll bring at least triple that support. Attendance figures prove we are a nation of event goers so tell what is this magical bigger picture that I am missing.

What bigger picture are you missing?
You are missing an argument Dinny.
I never said the couch potato event junkie did not exist.
It's the "why should we" attitude that was arrogant.


I have presented enough information,
why it was arrogant to the Irish couch potato and why it was  moronic in its actual content.
You have presented no basic argument as to why the 6 nations should not be A listed.
All I have read is a confused jumble of words and now you bring the Dubs into it.

[Dinny Breen]

I have no opinion on whether the 6 nations is FTA but I least understand thier positon but since you have all the opinions and none of the facts I'll spell it out to you mandatory Free to Air through legislation enforces a closed system on the IRFU. The union has a vested promotional interest in keeping some games free-to-air but it needs to be able to work collaboratively internationally in order to do so. The bloc negotiating used for the 6 Nations and Heineken Cup competitions is why the IRFU is able to get more than the value of the Irish market for its rights. In short it benefits from the scale of the FTA juggernauts in the UK and France because it is working with other unions to market the products as overall packages.