Should Cricket Be Shown On Terrestrial TV

[Kev]

I don't watch much cricket on Sky, because I don't have Sky, but I have watched a fair bit. I don't like the commentators, I don't like all the 'swooshes' and other crap sounds Sky TV always add in whenever they do anything with the graphics (Am I watching Sport or am I watching Robot Bloody Wars!?), I don't like the Adverts - especially as you are already paying for the privilege of watching it! I also object to having to subscribe to UK Menstrual Plus 1 and other such made up channels that I will not watch, before I can buy a sports package. But most of all only a complete Muppet would prefer to pay to watch something when they could watch the same thing for free.

BBC coverage of Home test matches was certainly preferable to Sky, hell even Ch4 was better. Granted Sky showed willing to cover it and nobody else really would have stumped up the cash but I will always will think it was a mistake to give Sky rights to all live cricket. Some should have remained on a non-subscription basis, with Digital Terrestrial TV (or Freesat for that matter)there is plenty of space for new sports channels, one less shopping network would be a start! Something should have been saved for those who either cannot afford ?50 a month to watch subscription TV, or for those who choose not to. It's damaging the sport, less people are watching it now and personally I'd rather it was shown to a greater audience than putting extra money in KP's pockets.

Don't get this whole HD argument either. First of all HD is not fantastic, its crappy low res - much less than the resolution most of us are viewing this website at, its just slightly higher than normal TV. Now lets face it, unless you are watching TV on a 40inch plus TV, who really sits there complaining that the normal digital TV signal looks poor? Besides HD is available for nowt on Freeset, what the hell are sky doing charging an extra tenner a month for it? That's a total rip off if ever I saw one.

It's TMS all the way for me.

 

[harrisb]

well said kev, i think we should start an e-petition

 

[King Pietersen]

I like the cricket coverage on Sky. Sure there are a few prats in the commentary box, but the graphics are good, the picture quality is superb, and more importantly they show a hell of alot of cricket. If Terrestrial TV was to get the rights to show cricket, we'd not get to see all the county games, internationals from around the world and the womens cricket, as Sky would probably not bother paying to get games not including England. I'm more than happy for Sky to keep the rights, we get alot of cricket and it's well presented. No complaints from me.

 

[Kev]

Agreed that they do show a lot of cricket, more than would be shown if they weren't around. But its the fact they have all of it that I have a problem with. In the same way as it wasn't right that Sky had all premiership football. It should have been split into packages. I don't think that it has effected Football, Sky continue to show loads but viewers now have a choice in choosing Setanta. I don't see why the same couldn't be the case for Cricket. There is a lot of it out there, and a lot that isn't shown. Why can't Setanta or BBC have cameras at a different Domestic match for example?

 

[harrisb]

i think that the BBC should make a couple of new channels,

BBC SPORT channels, available to freeview viewers or on the net. more people have freeview nowadays.

also, i think that sky should share the rights with the BBC. both channels can show the cricket. I don't know how many people watch the county matches, i think that there should be a county cricket website where you can get live streaming of every game for FREE!

that would be a much better idea, i mean, there are a few websites out there to watch the cricket on, but the connection is slow and the picture is grainy. but that isnt properly legal.
i think that the ecb should show cricket on their website, but not live. delayed by half an hour, i wouldnt mind.

also, the issue is already out there, i read an article in my grandads telegraph yesterday, they think that if young children cant access sport easily and cheaply, where will the next kevin pietersens come from, also, clubs showed an increase of membership after the 05 ashes. the last cricket to be shown on terrestrial tele. now, numbers are falling at a rate of 30 a year.

sounds steep and it is, it is time to change