Should HRV Pay to get Harness on Free-to-air TV like Netball has done?

[Messenger]

I totally agree about needing personalities Bruce. I know I am getting old but the little I hear of our young hosts, I sometimes think they are a little too excited or maybe just trying too hard - it is a little like race calling in that too much hype can be a bad thing, nowadays although a betting shop employee, I think Adam Hamilton gets it just right.

[Amlin]

The smooth velvety voice is now something of a previous generation "on air" these days it seems Kev! Some announcers you hear just murder the English language.


Not much independence in the trots media - surprising when you consider the amount of activity on the internet with blogs/websites etc, you would think there would be people punching out stories everywhere! Although considering how much of a closed shop the racing media seems, how long do you keep writing stories for nil pay?


I do think social media is the way forward - as Bruce said on a "smart" TV, providing the internet speed is suffice, you could watch the action rather than just through a traditional set.


I believe that an internet arm should be written into future media rights contracts regarding our vision - meaning that while a TV channel such as SKY can have the rights to broadcast the product, the industry should also be able to establish an online media centre to stream races with increased cover such as interviews/parade yard footage etc. It is our footage after all!


Apparently something like this was to occur for MM night but strangely was shut down on race morning.


And once we get this in place, let's give some new, fresh young talent a go for goodness sake!!

[Messenger]

I may have been harsh on the talent we have now, maybe they just get too excited on the really big nights. They sound far more measured and listenable tonight

[squaregaiter]

I totally agree about needing personalities Bruce. I know I am getting old but the little I hear of our young hosts, I sometimes think they are a little too excited or maybe just trying too hard - it is a little like race calling in that too much hype can be a bad thing, nowadays although a betting shop employee, I think Adam Hamilton gets it just right.

I am also a AH fan, always clean and professional and really does know his game, unfortunately he left the Sun and moved on and for the life of me I cant understand why at HRV someone didn't say it is better where he is in the printed media for harness than allowing him to move on and just like footballers maybe should have "sponsored" him at least he was well entrenched and gave space and possibly fought for space for our sport and the same goes for Cody, I understand he came from a rural paper down Warnambool way ???? and he would have found space with stories that possibly have dried up now.
To use a famous saying this week by "hook or by crook" we need cross media personalities to help the sport. Foot traffic grows business and in our case we need them who are the presenters, writers & readers in all media including these days the internet via websites/blogs & Facebook and so forth

[Messenger]

It would seem that there will not be any blackout of Vic gallops
From The Age today (sorry I cannot find a link)

The battle for the Victorian racing television rights took another dramatic turn on Saturday with the Seven Network now able to cover live racing from Tuesday.
It is understood that once Racing Victoria and the shareholders, which include the principal clubs of Melbourne, give a direction, Seven can start broadcasting.
Last week, Tabcorp said it would cease covering Victorian racing after Racing Victoria recommended to the principal clubs they should accept the offer from the Seven Network ahead of Tabcorp.
It is understood Tabcorp was deeply annoyed at RV’s recommendation and talks broke down after the announcement.
Racing authorities would not comment but Fairfax Media believes one of Seven’s free-to air networks will begin telecasts from Tuesday.
The vision rights have been a contentious point for the past six months.
Tabcorp offered $300 million for the next 10 years to obtain the domestic and international rights.
Last year NSW and Victoria ended their ownership of the disastrous TVN network.
It was a huge embarrassment for racing in Australia as it accumulated hundreds of millions of dollars in losses.

'Seven to cover races' by Patrick Bartley, Sunday Age June 14, 2015

[squaregaiter]

"It is understood Tabcorp was deeply annoyed"

Don't you just love that ollloloolololol


Tabcorp offered $300 million for the next 10 years to obtain the domestic and international rights.


WOW !!!!!! a whole $30 million per year !!!! ( actually in 5-10 years it would be far less than that)
now let me see without getting my calculator out- lets look at it, Domestic and International rights to control YOUR SPORT and Destiny and make big bucks as well- what were the Melbourne Cup turnover figures again ? ollololoololol I think there is a short change there !!!! even the several meetings at Harness that took in 4 ONLY Trotting races into France TURNED OVER beyond 1.2 million each meeting and what did we get paid for that..............hhhhhhhhhhhmmmm


Well Done RV..........now bring in corporate bookies ( not that I am a lover of them mind you) and lets cut the core business of TABCORP, who knows they may realize they have erred, then again, it maybe too late and the bird has flown now - reap what you sow as the saying goes

[Amlin]

There aren't too many left who will write the occasional negative story on the sport now Bruce - and haven't been for some 10 years or so.


Going way back, people like Cain and Trembath caused grief for the old TCB in the day with some classic yarns but it kept the industry in the headlines and, as they say, any publicity is good publicity.


Only on Thursday has an article finally appeared in the dailies here re the HRV audit - it focussed on the perceived impact on the venue being named after TABCORP. All the headlines when it was announced an audit will take place, and no journalist available to ring HRV and ask about it to generate an article on how the future of the sport will look (taking on board suggestions, clarifying some points with supporting data etc).


Unless you pay for the space now, very little interest it seems I'm afraid. And if you do dare have a say in the negative or supply some constructive criticism - no soup for you!

[Messenger]

http://www.theage.com.au/sport/horse...15-ghongh.html

Vic gallops clubs cannot get their act together so there is no Sky or Ch7 coverage from today

ps This may take a minute to load as it did for me - Age have been having website problems of late

[squaregaiter]

[QUOTE=Amlin;43095]There aren't too many left who will write the occasional negative story on the sport now Bruce - and haven't been for some 10 years or so.


Not sure where that word came from Amlin as there is no room for that or any time wasting in my life, I am a strictly a positive person only J


this media release is the sort of thing I was steering to where personalities ( commentators/ sportsman/notables that are in the media often ) where it is possible for cross media promoting the sport daily/weekly even in a stealth manner as long as they have a winner and it is positive then stories will come.
http://www.harness.org.au/news-artic...?news_id=26823

[Messenger]

I am more a fan of truthful stories whether they be positive or negative as that is what I consider news. As much as I want to see our PR people obtain some positive placement in the media, I do not want it to be at the expense of news. When I talk about news, I am probably talking gallops really as nobody gets their harness news from conventional media sources nowadays - far more likely to be from harnesslink or HRV etc
Paid ads in the papers is probably the closest thing harness has to positive news nowadays, they are after all information about coming events. (ps Dont get me wrong, I think they are a very good thing)