Goodbye to ART football??

[Analoguesat]

Showtime Arabia wins Premier League
for Seasons 2007/8 to 2009/10
World’s best football league to be available exclusively on its network


Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 12 November 2006


Showtime Arabia announced today that the world’s most popular and watched sporting league, the Premier League, will be available exclusively on Showtime Arabia, the best pay television network across the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region. Showtime Arabia has acquired the broadcast rights for three seasons starting in August 2007.

Famous clubs, world-class players, passionate fans, and a way of life for millions, the Premier League is widely acknowledged as the most exciting football competition in the world. Premier League matches are broadcast every week during the season in over 200 countries around the world and followed by over a billion fans.

Mr. Richard Scudamore, Chief Executive of the Premier League, said “We are extremely pleased to have awarded the broadcast rights to Showtime Arabia. We believe Showtime Arabia has the perfect platform on which to further raise the profile of the Premier League in a region which has shown great appetite for football. We look forward to working with them to bring all of the very best of the Premier League action to homes across the region”.

“Acquiring these rights is absolutely in line with Showtime Arabia’s strategy to provide our customers with the very best in entertainment, including exclusive premium sports, movies, and series.” said Mr. Faisal Al Ayyar, Chairman of Showtime Arabia. “The Premier League’s choice of Showtime Arabia is a reflection of our leadership in the MENA region. Showtime Arabia values their trust and will work closely with them to execute a strategy which clearly articulates the high quality value of the league and leverages the strength of the Showtime brand and network across the region.”

Building upon its leading technology platform, Showtime Arabia will set new standards for the production and broadcast of Premier League matches. In both Arabic and English language, the innovative coverage will further distinguish Showtime Arabia as the leading pay television operator in the region.


About The Premier League
The Premier League broadcasts 380 live football matches to over 200 countries and over 1 billion people every week. The world’s most popular league is increasingly the home for many of the best international football players, including Michael Ballack, Andrei Schevchenko, Christiano Ronaldo, Mido, Cesc Fabregas, Wayne Rooney, and Thierry Henry playing for some of the world’s biggest football clubs including Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, and Liverpool.


About Showtime Arabia
Showtime Arabia is the leading pay televison network in the Middle East and North Africa. The company provides customers across the region with the very best in exclusive premium sports, Arabic movies on Al Shasha, and blockbuster movies and series through its exclusive relationships with major Hollywood studios. The network is owned by Gulf DTH, which is a joint venture between KIPCO and Viacom.

source : Showtime Arabia

[Analoguesat]

No idea if this means the end to ART football - it possible this is only for the Middle East. If it turns out they are indeed eclusive, then most of the UK can wave goodbye to cheap premiership due to the size dish required - Showtime operate off Nilesat 7W.

[Jimdefruit]

Art have announced that the football will after this year be shown by an associated network. Sounds a bit like Digitalb selling off the sports section. The big difference will be that Art dont have much else of worth so their cards wont be of any interest outside the arab world.

[BGonaSTICK]

I guess a lot of that cash will be spent on 'mafia' cards instead.

[Mship]

Well it does look like the end of ART football :'(

It really is a great package for the armchair premiership fan

Let's just hope something else becomes available by the start of next season

Until then I'm sure the rumour factory will be working overtime

Cheers,
Kev.

[satsid]

(Showtime operate off Nilesat 7W)
to me this would be about right where footie will be showed.even before i got my card i knew there was going to be changes nexst year.when you look @ things like this,it always pays to get as big dish as you can.im not saying for sure,but its not the first time providers have moved satellite on a weaker signel.i would not be suprized if our good friend r/m not had somthing to say.there have been Middle East channels poping up on 8 west & 12 west,so who knows for sure.
sid

[BGonaSTICK]

You can be sure that at every deal renewal, Rupert will be sticking his big two-penneth in :

Nilesat reception will not be a goer for the vast majority of UK viewers. For the price of a dish and subscription to Showtime, they could buy a full Sky Sports subscription.

I don't think for a minute though that it will come to that. Things surely can't get THAT bad! :roflmao:

[Analoguesat]

Well if anyone has an unwanted ART card after the football has finished I'll happily take it off their hands to watch the Arabic channels

[Mship]

If nothing comes up I suppose the DigitAlb sports package (on 16E?) could always be an option.

Not as many games as ART and a bit more expensive , but I hear that picture quality is superior to ART and they do English commentary as well

Cheers,
Kev.

[BGonaSTICK]

Have you seen the latest prices for the premium channels carrying PL? Pretty scary...