Setanta

[+CaleyD]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/s...rem/8004397.stm

Looks like they want to do a u-turn on the increased money they agreed with the SPL at the end of last year!!!

Aside from the immediate impact of less money than clubs might have been counting on, I think it will also re-ignite a push towards a 10 tier top league so they can share the pie among fewer teams.

[CaleyMad]

Will SPL games be shown on normal tv now?

I know the ICT v Motherwell game was on BBC Alba but i dont have sky so i missed it.

[Johnboy]

I've had the distinct impression that Satellite TV football coverage has enriched and enhanced the game south of the border for some time now.

Am I wrong in thinking it has had the opposite effect here in Scotland?

[Alex MacLeod]

I think Setanta paid out too much down south for the expected returns. Dont think too many down there took up the Setanta package. Sky's been established for too long. I also think there was an expectation of more joint ventures with Virgin Media but that is on hold till the Virgin banking committments have stabilised again.

[Kingsmills]

The irony is that in the course of negotiating the new deal the SPL rejected an offer from SKY which wasn't that far short of the Setanta figure.

It may be that SKY might want to get back involved with a view to turning the screw on their only remaining serious rivals for live TV rights.

[Yngwie]

The problem for Setanta isn't really that they paid too much in England, it's that after the recent auction they will only have 23 Premiership games a season in future, compared to their current 46. The fear is that not many of their current 1.5m subscribers (or advertisers) will keep paying when there are so few games. (They had less than 200,000 subscribers before they got the Premiership rights).

[+Gringo]

I just wish they'd go away.

[Guest Muir-Jaggie]

Alot of familys and that will be getting rid of setanta due to the cost now due to the credit crunch. Its a shame in away thats theres no channel shows SPL games only cup games (BBC and Sky Sports)

[DornochJAGGIE]

they should show some games on the BBC. Ino they show cup games, but it will never happen.