The past 12 months haven't been great for capitalism and the free market. A lack of regulation and the unique idiosyncracies of the USA's politcal system have contributed to the fact that the world's economy has headed south quicker than Hawthorn for a home game.
No one is really out there advocating free market solutions to economic problems any more. Kevin Rudd, self proclaimed economic conservative in 2007, is now dancing on the grave of John Howard's neoliberalism and economic rationalism a short 16 months later. The worm has turned.
At the other end of the public spectrum, the footy season is nearly upon us. Two weeknight prime-time games greet us in Round 1, Cousins v Judd (or Richmond v Carlton) on Thursday night on Channel 10, and the Grand Final re-match (Hawthorn v Geelong) on Friday night on Channel 7.
These games will not be shown live into Melbourne. Ten is showing Thursday night's game on a half-hour delay, while Seven will show it's regular Friday night match on it's usual one-hour delay.
A lot of hard-core footy fans aren't happy about this. Channel 7 is targeted for particular vitriole, considering the hour delay is usually filled with Better Homes and Gardens, not exactly can't-miss television for the average footy fan.
Channel 7 have their reasons, and don't appear to be budging from this any time soon. It doesn't bother me much, because I can usually wait the hour. Having said that, I don't usually make it all the way through a Friday night match on the TV unless St Kilda are playing.
So how do we get the networks to change? Well, here is where a free market solution will work.
Don't watch.
A lot of the louder critics of footy-on-delay state that they listen to the game live on radio or watch updates on the league's website. I can usually manage to avoid doing this, but many other cannot.
My suggestion is you keep doing this, but once it comes on the TV, don't turn your TV on.
The only way the networks are going to get the hint that this is important is through ratings. If the ratings fall through the floor, then ad revenues will as well, and so will the amount the AFL can charge for the rights. This means that the AFL will eventually have to permit the networks to show the games live, even if they would prefer this not to be the case.
So, if you want live footy on TV, settle for nothing less. If it ain't live, don't watch it.
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1 comment:
It is a good sentiment to try and change the telecasting of football games to suit the viewers and not the whims of the networks. Fans have been disgruntled by the telecast times for mant seasons now and it will not change. The networks know the fans will watch and they are in the business of selling advertising to make money and not airing the programs to suit the viewer. In fact by delaying a game on tv the network gets to increase the revenue spread for prime time rates charged in otherwise low scale timeslots.
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