Tells us what cycling is coming up on TV....

[albion]

By then, those with Discovery will have the satisfaction of paying £15+++ per month for the exclusivity.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

I have got fed up with some of the Eurosport coverage of cycling at times

AT the start of the year I had race after race - some one off and some week long tour things - and I would sit down to watch an episode and would get another sport
Thta would continue for 20-30 minutes and if I was lucky the cycling would start
No attempt to actually do anything to lead in - justdiect onto the live coverage and it was clear that the commentators had no idea when or if they had done so
Hence they were in the middle of a sentence and possibly a long discussion
so I had to work out who was were, who was even racing, what had happened - with no help

then - often - it would simply stop recording with 10-15 minutes - or more left

presumably due to the schedule running late

IF ONLY there was some way for the house box to communicate with the central box - they could call it The Internet or something

even more annoying I had a video recorder many many eyars ago that had VHSPlus - or something like that - that managed it perfectly well with no way to communicate


It happened so often that I just gave up recording cycling - it was just too annoying.
Then I started again for the Giro - but even one day of that finished early and I didn;t see the end

The TdF was fine as I recorded the ITV version - same for the Tour of Britain
they were fine

 

[DRM]

I much preferred the ITV highlights, with Ned, David, Gary & Pete plus the Dutch geology professor it was on when they said it was, finished when they said it would & no Carlton Kirby!

 

[Dogtrousers]

While at the same time agreeing a deal with the EBU until 2030 applies to Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Switzerland.

What does that mean? I googled EBU - European Broadcasting Union is the world’s foremost alliance of public service media,

I guess this means people in European countries getting free to air?

Given that cycling is more of a minority sport in the UK than, say Belgium that's not altogether surprising.

 

[geocycle]

The loss of the ITV team is very sad. It was worth watching just for Gary and his polo shirts, never mind the driest monologue on tv. I also like the extras on geology, architecture etc that give the race a sense of place. Essential in my view to get through a TT or sprint stage. The Eurosport high are very poorly edited. I did quite like the Breakaway although the chemistry isn’t quite as good without Dan Lloyd alongside Orla and Adam.

 

[DRM]

One other thing that comes to mind is that pro cycling teams rely on sponsors, who in turn want to see their brand, on the teams kit given airtime on tv to as many viewers as possible from either getting in a breakaway, some bonkers descending, or a stage win, so ASO dumping it behind a paywall, benefits absolutely no one, viewers, sponsors & ultimately the teams.
Edit: I also really enjoyed the follow up daily podcast of Never Strays Car, with Ned, David & Pete travelling between stages, and discussing the race, going off on a tangent, then getting back to the race again, also the closing music on the highlights show was a highlight in itself, some genius choices that summed up what you’d just watched, a sad day for Tour fans in Britain, the more I think about it, the more I think this could bite ASO on the backside

 

[MasterDabber]

I used to switch back and forth between ES and ITV.... to ITV when Kirby came on-air and back to ES when all the donkey sanctuary/funeral plans came on ITV. Will miss Gary Imlach though. Think he is great (genuinely). But...bad news for cycling if no free-to-air coverage of TdeF is available.

 

[mjr]

What does that mean? I googled EBU - European Broadcasting Union is the world’s foremost alliance of public service media,

I guess this means people in European countries getting free to air?

Given that cycling is more of a minority sport in the UK than, say Belgium that's not altogether surprising.

Yes. It gives me more options. The omission of Germany from that list seems odd because: 1. Eurosport is free in Germany so it wouldn't cost them subscribers; 2. ARD/ZDF used to only show a few stages in full and very short highlights, so it basically recruited viewers for The Breakaway with the Jensie and presenter; 3. Germany's broadcasters are big EBU funders, I believe on a par with BBC, RAI, TVE and France TVs.

Another odd one is Croatia is missing but several of its neighbours are listed,

 

[mjr]

It’s disgusting, how everything is to subscribe to, I’m sure ITV used to have the Vuelta, that was unavailable this year, if they want people to be interested in any sport, let people be able to watch it, the greedy barstewards

ITV had the Vuelta for a couple of years, then ASO let Discovery/WB tie it up, maybe as a test to see what damage it does to viewing figures or sponsor approval. Highlights have been on Quest HD or DMax the last few years.

 

[Dogtrousers]

One other thing that comes to mind is that pro cycling teams rely on sponsors, who in turn want to see their brand, on the teams kit given airtime on tv to as many viewers as possible

True, but the impact is limited.

This is only the UK we're talking about and many of the sponsors don't have a presence in the UK. Quickstep floors, Cofidis, Intermarche, Wanty, Gobert, AG2R, FDJ, Uno-X and so on. So it's not going to be much of a loss to them.

Not all, of course. There are international/global brands like Lidl, Trek and Redbull and others. Only Ineos Grenadiers is at all UK specific I think.

In fact, this could provide one reason why it's more likely to be free to air in continental Europe. That and the fact that cycling's more important there.

 

[ColinJ]

many of the sponsors don't have a presence in the UK. Quickstep floors...

My sister had Quickstep flooring fitted to a couple of rooms in her house in Devon!

As for ITV losing the highlights... That's a pity. It looks like DIY highlights from Discovery/Eurosport in future. (I would rather choose my own highlights rather than put up with their pathetic efforts.)

 

[EltonFrog]

My sister had Quickstep flooring fitted to a couple of rooms in her house in Devon!

As for ITV losing the highlights... That's a pity. It looks like DIY highlights from Discovery/Eurosport in future. (I would rather choose my own highlights rather than put up with their pathetic efforts.)

Four rooms in my house have Quickstep floors.

 

[rich p]

I understand people missing ITV coverage and highlights. It's a good way for casual fans to get hooked. I haven't watched it for years personally. Hated the ads and David Millar, but that's my prejudice.
Discovery + has all the racing in the calendar, watch when you want, live or from the start. FF or rewind.
And it's £5.99 pm.
What am I missing... apart from Gary Imlach's polo shirts?

 

[geocycle]

i have Discovery plus via my BT subscription. The full race coverage is ok, although I also find Carlton hard to listen to. My problem is that the editing of the highlights show is poor and there Is no presentation, build up, or sense of occasion to keep me focused on the event. I don’t watch adverts on tv as I record terrestrial channels and chromecast things like Discovery.

 

[DRM]

True, but the impact is limited.

This is only the UK we're talking about and many of the sponsors don't have a presence in the UK. Quickstep floors, Cofidis, Intermarche, Wanty, Gobert, AG2R, FDJ, Uno-X and so on. So it's not going to be much of a loss to them.

Not all, of course. There are international/global brands like Lidl, Trek and Redbull and others. Only Ineos Grenadiers is at all UK specific I think.

In fact, this could provide one reason why it's more likely to be free to air in continental Europe. That and the fact that cycling's more important there.

I’ve got Quickstep flooring in all 3 bedrooms and Soudal adhesives and sealants are definitely sold in B&Q, and at trade flooring and window fitting outlets