EBU DG calls for tighter regulation of sports rights

Extending the list of sports rights that are reserved for free-to-air channels and tightening regulation of sports could help prevent “an extremely precarious scenario that is comparable to the property bubble and the dotcom bubble” in sports rights, according to EBU director-general Ingrid Deltenre.

Speaking at a Public Broadcasters International conference in London, Deltenre said that the sports business was characterised by short-termism and that inflation in sports rights bore “all the characteristics of a typical bubble”. She said regulation should be tightened to protect national interests and domestic sports, and argued that extending free-to-air requirements would “put the brakes on and restore common sense”.