Dust settles on tussle for World Cup livestreaming
CCTV breaks with tradition, shares event with internet service providers
A battle royal between internet giants for the lucrative Chinese rights to livestream online the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia was resolved only weeks ahead of the global sports gala, which kicks off on Thursday.
As the exclusive licensee on the Chinese mainland for the copyright to various FIFA events between 2018 and 2022, China Central Television broke with tradition and agreed to share streaming the event with online service providers.
The State broadcaster won the bid for the exclusive copyright last November, spending an estimated $300 million to $400 million on the deal, Chinese media reported.
Migu Video, a video portal affiliated with China Mobile, was named CCTV’s official new media partner on May 22, authorizing it to offer livestreaming and on-demand videos of all 64 World Cup matches.
One week later, Youku, e-commerce giant Alibaba’s subsidiary focusing on video streaming, was designated another CCTV partner in sharing the World Cup streaming rights.
It is the first time that new media in China have acquired the livestreaming rights to a FIFA World Cup, Migu executive Li Jun told China Economic Weekly.
China Mobile has worked a great deal in the last few years with CCTV in online content production and distribution, Li said.
“The new media copyright partnership is part of the long-term collaboration”, which doesn’t involve the distribution of copyright, but sharing online streaming, he said.
Yang Weidong, president of Alibaba Digital Media and Entertainment Group and Youku, said at a recent news conference that his company was not the highest or the earliest bidder.
But, he added, his company was “the most aspirational” bidder. “What we provide is not just a live broadcasting platform, but an online ecosystem created by Alibaba to explore various approaches to cooperation.”
According to Yang it was these elements that tipped the balance in their favor with CCTV’s decision on Youku.
Yi Jiandong, a sports expert, told China Economic Weekly that there was now “an irresistible trend” to share livestreaming rights to the FIFA World Cup with the new media.
Back in 2014, many Chinese soccer fans, who were ardent users of smartphones, complained about unavailability of online resources to access livestreaming services covering the international soccer extravaganza, Yi recalled.
In addition, this time round it was a good tactic to license the copyright to two video streaming service providers, rather than one, he added. “Neither of them is an exclusive partner, so there must be competition between them.”
Migu’s Li Jun told the China Economic Weekly that from his company’s perspective, the advertising revenue was not a primary concern during this year’s FIFA World Cup.
“User experience, streaming and content quality are the things most valued by Migu.”
China Mobile has launched a series of promotional packages designed for the World Cup, which has attracted a great number of new users.
Li declined to reveal the number of new users, but admitted that it was “totally beyond our expectations”.
A feature of new media is that it meets the widely diverse demands of various customer groups, Li said.
Both Migu and Youku have announced they have invited popular sports presenters and entertainment celebrities to join in their program production.
Yi said that it is rare worldwide for a single media unit to monopolize the copyright covering all-media channels, when it relates to a professional sports event that has high commercial value, such as the NBA in the United States and the Premier League in the United Kingdom. In most cases, he said, copyright is shared among multiple media units.
“Viewers can choose different channels according to their personal preferences,” Yi said. “It is commonplace abroad that viewers will choose a media and its channel because a sports commentator who works with it is their favorite.”
The State Administration of Radio and Television recently issued a policy to ban internet TV from unauthorized livestreaming of events in China, as a temporary arrangement for the industry.
The move is targeted at potential violations of copyright of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, industry insiders said, noting that Migu and Youku would not be affected, after being granted transmission rights.
As Russia begins hosting the 2018 FIFA World Cup, media analysts have estimated that the number of viewers is projected to top 1 billion in neighboring China, a marked increase from four years ago.