Spark Sport ‘still cheaper than Sky’

Rugby fans have welcomed Spark’s cheaper pricing for streaming the entire Rugby World Cup but are concerned some rural viewers could miss out because of poor internet connectivity.

Fans will be able to watch all 48 games on Spark Sport for $59.99 if they take advantage of a ‘‘super-early bird special’’ that goes on sale next month or pay $79.99 if they leave buying a pass until June.

Prices jump to $89.99 a month during the nine days before the tournament starts on September 20.

Sky TV has dominated rugby broadcasting in New Zealand for so long that it seemed almost a given it would screen this year’s Rugby World Cup – until it lost out to Spark and TVNZ.

One Facebook commenter said Spark’s prices were ‘‘still better than paying that much a month with Sky’’.

Another said: ‘‘If a Sky Sport customer is willing to pay that for a pay-per-view fight, then surely a one-off for the World Cup on a diff [sic] platform isn’t too bad.’’

Spark’s managing director, Simon Moutter, took a dig at Sky TV, saying: ‘‘Less than one month of a Sky subscription during the 2015 tournament and materially lower than the $100 or so we stated when we first bought the rights. A terrific deal for rugby fans!’’

Customers will be able to buy the Spark Sport Rugby World Cup 2019 tournament pass or an individual match pass without buying the $19.99 monthly subscription.

But some fans also pointed out on social media that while the streaming price was cheap, people with poor internet connections could be disadvantaged.

Another said having reliable internet was the first issue that Spark needed to address.

Farmer Blair Drysdale posted on Twitter: ‘‘No Spark NZ, I won’t be paying for something you won’t be able to deliver on in rural areas; will just watch the free-to-air games.’’

Another asked on Spark Sport’s Facebook page how much data streaming would use. Spark said the amount of data used depended on the speed of each person’s internet connection.

A Facebook commenter said: ‘‘Must be the only country in the world where our national sport isn’t free.’’ Another called the paid service ‘‘greedy and mean’’.

A Sky TV spokeswoman said that comparing its services with Spark Sport was like comparing ‘‘apples and oranges’’.

‘‘With the 2015 pricing they mentioned, the Sky customer was getting the full Sky Basic service (more than 40 channels) and our full range of sport programming, including RWC but also international cricket, US Open Tennis, NRL playoffs, NRL grand final, Bathurst, ITM Cup, UEFA football, NBL, A-League, to name a few.

‘‘By comparison, Spark will charge $90 for RWC matches only and, of course, 12 of the matches will also be available on free-to-air.’’

TVNZ will air 12 games for free.