On 21/10/2024 at 00:26, Diamond_Jim said:

Not sure on Friday night

Foxtel have exclusivity for Saturday games for Victorian viewers for Rounds 1-15.

Other than the occasional re-set to 1080 from 4K (re-installing the app fixes this) I've found the Kayo connection to be very reliable.

They are fast losing sports that interest the bulk of viewers during the summer break. They really need either EPL or better still the Champions League to deliver a year round service worth paying for. The alternative is to offer a 12 month sub for the price of 10 months.

The other change which will come unfortunately is limiting the two screens to one physical location. Just a matter of time

PS Forgot to mention that Kayo's sister streaming product... Binge ... is about to lose its biggest content drawcard in HBO. To deflect from this loss they are introducing some sports onto Binge.

BINGE is entering its sports era with an expanded content offering to include live and on-demand premium sport, direct from Kayo Sports, on the platform, as well as additional live news channels, at no additional cost to subscribers.

Starting with a bumper finals weekend with the back-to-back AFLW Grand Final and WBBL Grand Final on 30 November and 1 December, sport will appear on BINGE. Following that will be Men’s Big Bash League, Super Netball, and, come winter, NRL and AFL footy on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays (simulcast games) during the regular season with no ad breaks during play.

Additional sports and shows coming to BINGE direct from Kayo Sports include World Surfing League, Women’s Golf (USLPGA, Ladies’ European Tour, AIG Women’s Open), all Kayo Minis of the F1®, and Fox Sports-produced magazine shows including AFL 360, NRL 360, Sunday Night with Matty Johns, Bounce, and The Back Page, among others.

Who knows if Binge will survive.

It always depends on the many cocktails of the connection methods.

Chromecast with ADSL broadband I find a bit clunky but after switching to Amazon Fire Stick this has been the best Kayo streaming yet personally. 

As an aside, where is HBO heading to?

  On 21/10/2024 at 05:50, layzie said:

It always depends on the many cocktails of the connection methods.

Chromecast with ADSL broadband I find a bit clunky but after switching to Amazon Fire Stick this has been the best Kayo streaming yet personally. 

As an aside, where is HBO heading to?

Its funny how it all works as well. I was watching the A-League on Paramount+ direct from LG App on Friday and was encountering significant connection issues - buffering issues and then lost connection and couldnt even get back into the game after a reset, switched to chromecast/google tv and most of the problems disappeared instantly.

Never really had any other buffering issues, but Paramount+ are a bit flaky with live streaming.

Re: HBO they announced recently they'll be launching HBO Max in Australia in the first half of 2025.  Much like FoxSports, the price of Binge continues to rise even though they're losing content.

  On 21/10/2024 at 04:49, Grr-owl said:

All depends on screen res plus how much of your field of vision is taken up by the screen. If it's HD and you sit far enough away it won't matter. If its huge and you are close to it, you would.

4K is gonna matter when your screen is big and it is taking up a lot of your field of vision.

Probably explains it, screen is only 55", about to increase to either 65" or 75" so will see if I notice the difference.

Best Kayo in 4k quality? Thru Telsta tv - which is sadly being bricked on October 31 and being turned into a glorified hockey puck

I’ve  tried root jail breaking it but I can’t get it to work

Apple 4k is average for 4k for Kayo - fine for everything else

And trying to stream Kayo thru chrome browser is truly dreadful 

  On 21/10/2024 at 13:00, whatwhat say what said:

Best Kayo in 4k quality? Thru Telsta tv - which is sadly being bricked on October 31 and being turned into a glorified hockey puck

I’ve  tried root jail breaking it but I can’t get it to work

Apple 4k is average for 4k for Kayo - fine for everything else

And trying to stream Kayo thru chrome browser is truly dreadful 

Native android tv app seems pretty good. Perhaps try a chromecast if you dont have android/google tv?

  On 21/10/2024 at 06:19, roy11 said:

Its funny how it all works as well. I was watching the A-League on Paramount+ direct from LG App on Friday and was encountering significant connection issues - buffering issues and then lost connection and couldnt even get back into the game after a reset, switched to chromecast/google tv and most of the problems disappeared instantly.

Never really had any other buffering issues, but Paramount+ are a bit flaky with live streaming.

Re: HBO they announced recently they'll be launching HBO Max in Australia in the first half of 2025.  Much like FoxSports, the price of Binge continues to rise even though they're losing content.

Yeah it's really funny and unfortunately a lot of trial and error and I wouldn't be surprised if my exact situation with chromecast worked perfectly for someone else. For whatever reason when I use it with Kayo I get the buffering despite it never happening with Optus, Stan or anything else.

Gee wiz, the cost of living crunch is really making us choose. If I had Foxtel, HBO would be one of the last things keeping me there. 

  On 21/10/2024 at 11:36, Dr. Gonzo said:

Probably explains it, screen is only 55", about to increase to either 65" or 75" so will see if I notice the difference.

So i am just on the border for 4K worth it, but if its a tight game I will get up from the couch and walk to the back of the room and pace aha

  On 21/10/2024 at 22:34, roy11 said:

So i am just on the border for 4K worth it, but if its a tight game I will get up from the couch and walk to the back of the room and pace aha

These days 4K 75" can be had for $1400 or so at Costco.... Big enough for most. 

Not sure what this means for Kayo and future AFL TV rights pricing but it's interesting.

The touted buyer for Foxtel has pulled out citing "unrealistic price expectations".

But after discussions, Platinum is no longer actively engaged, said a source with direct knowledge of the talks, speaking on condition of anonymity.

News Corp’s asking price for Foxtel was unrealistic, the source said. That leaves News Corp, which publicly flagged interest in selling Foxtel three months ago but with scant details to share, in a potentially precarious position.

Seems like they missed their opportunity to sell in 2020..

In 2021, when News Corp was weighing up the initial public offering, The Australian Financial Review suggested Foxtel’s valuation as high as $4 billion and said its turnaround was worthy of an MBA case study. Other valuations were more modest, but it’s unlikely to fetch anywhere near the US$2 billion offered by US cable magnate Leo Hindery in 2020.

The Age article bears reading on many levels...

https://www.theage.com.au/business/companies/the-murdochs-want-to-get-rid-of-foxtel-there-s-just-one-problem-20241113-p5kqe7.html

  On 15/11/2024 at 02:00, Diamond_Jim said:

Not sure what this means for Kayo and future AFL TV rights pricing but it's interesting.

The touted buyer for Foxtel has pulled out citing "unrealistic price expectations".

But after discussions, Platinum is no longer actively engaged, said a source with direct knowledge of the talks, speaking on condition of anonymity.

News Corp’s asking price for Foxtel was unrealistic, the source said. That leaves News Corp, which publicly flagged interest in selling Foxtel three months ago but with scant details to share, in a potentially precarious position.

Seems like they missed their opportunity to sell in 2020..

In 2021, when News Corp was weighing up the initial public offering, The Australian Financial Review suggested Foxtel’s valuation as high as $4 billion and said its turnaround was worthy of an MBA case study. Other valuations were more modest, but it’s unlikely to fetch anywhere near the US$2 billion offered by US cable magnate Leo Hindery in 2020.

The Age article bears reading on many levels...

https://www.theage.com.au/business/companies/the-murdochs-want-to-get-rid-of-foxtel-there-s-just-one-problem-20241113-p5kqe7.html

foxtel is a millstone around news corp

it's not actually a huge cost in terms of their total global business, because oztraya is so small, but the rich don't stay rich by spending their money on loss-making ventures

I wonder if Foxtel will still be around in 10-20 years, or whether it will be either 100% streaming or free to air tv as your options.

  On 15/11/2024 at 02:31, whatwhat say what said:

foxtel is a millstone around news corp

it's not actually a huge cost in terms of their total global business, because oztraya is so small, but the rich don't stay rich by spending their money on loss-making ventures

Their subscriptions will plummet once HBO goes standalone next year, surely.

  On 15/11/2024 at 07:10, Dr. Gonzo said:

Their subscriptions will plummet once HBO goes standalone next year, surely.

Certainly Binge will drop

The Box watchers seem to be rusted on but they're certainly not increasing in number

At present there are are around ten streaming products. Maybe more (Bein anyone... it's the tennis.. well some of it).

Something has to give

If you want to say goodbye to BT... here's your chance

During the 2025 AFL season, Fox Footy commentary and production will be available on all games for the first time along with no ad-breaks during play and every match will also be made available in 4K on Kayo Sports and Foxtel.

https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2024-fox-footy-tv-commentators-for-2025-season-leigh-matthews-joins-anthony-hudson-and-gerard-whateley-call-friday-nights-new-afl-360-and-on-the-couch-hosts/news-story/3ea9e46e284c91e3be16d14d2acfae05

  On 18/11/2024 at 21:54, Diamond_Jim said:

If you want to say goodbye to BT... here's your chance

During the 2025 AFL season, Fox Footy commentary and production will be available on all games for the first time along with no ad-breaks during play and every match will also be made available in 4K on Kayo Sports and Foxtel.

https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2024-fox-footy-tv-commentators-for-2025-season-leigh-matthews-joins-anthony-hudson-and-gerard-whateley-call-friday-nights-new-afl-360-and-on-the-couch-hosts/news-story/3ea9e46e284c91e3be16d14d2acfae05

eureka 

Another potential buyer has appeared on the scene for buying Foxtel.

Company is DAZN, a big player in the Europe streaming market.

From Wikipedia...

The DAZN platform was founded in 2015 and broadcasts live and on-demand sport in over 200 countries worldwide with a strong domestic presence in Italy, Spain, Germany, Japan, France, Portugal, Belgium, Taiwan, the United States and Canada, where it has key domestic broadcast rights.^[7] It is considered to be Europe's largest digital sports broadcaster with over 75 programming rights.^{[8][9][10][11]} As of 2023, the service has 20 million paid subscribers globally.^[7]

 

Hard to say what it would mean for Kayo. One suggestion is that they could ditch the Kayo backend and replace it with the present DAZN platform. Content would not change due to geo restrictions but the actual screen quality etc might alter. Cannot see it being a good thing for Foxtel's local staff including productions and commentators if DAZN goes on an efficiency drive that favours a light touch global platform.

https://mumbrella.com.au/potential-foxtel-buyer-revealed-857377

Edited November 22, 2024Nov 22 by Diamond_Jim

  On 22/11/2024 at 04:58, Diamond_Jim said:

Another potential buyer has appeared on the scene for buying Foxtel.

Company is DAZN, a big player in the Europe streaming market.

From Wikipedia...

The DAZN platform was founded in 2015 and broadcasts live and on-demand sport in over 200 countries worldwide with a strong domestic presence in Italy, Spain, Germany, Japan, France, Portugal, Belgium, Taiwan, the United States and Canada, where it has key domestic broadcast rights.^[7] It is considered to be Europe's largest digital sports broadcaster with over 75 programming rights.^{[8][9][10][11]} As of 2023, the service has 20 million paid subscribers globally.^[7]

 

Hard to say what it would mean for Kayo. One suggestion is that they could ditch the Kayo backend and replace it with the present DAZN platform. Content would not change due to geo restrictions but the actual screen quality etc might alter. Cannot see it being a good thing for Foxtel's local staff including productions and commentators if DAZN goes on an efficiency drive that favours a light touch global platform.

https://mumbrella.com.au/potential-foxtel-buyer-revealed-857377

DAZN have handled NFL Gamepass since last season. The first season was a debacle - this year it's been a little better but they still have issues you don't expect when paying $250-300 for a sub. Streams randomly restarting, wrong streams starting when you click on a game tile, streams starting at the end so you spoil the score etc etc

At least the quality has been ok this year (last year the buffering and drop in frame rate was bad) but still would be very frustrating trying to watch AFL on those servers/platform.

  On 22/11/2024 at 10:02, Dr. Gonzo said:

DAZN have handled NFL Gamepass since last season. The first season was a debacle - this year it's been a little better but they still have issues you don't expect when paying $250-300 for a sub. Streams randomly restarting, wrong streams starting when you click on a game tile, streams starting at the end so you spoil the score etc etc

At least the quality has been ok this year (last year the buffering and drop in frame rate was bad) but still would be very frustrating trying to watch AFL on those servers/platform.

they want the rights presumably to bundle with their other contracts, but do they buy the tech with those rights?

that'll be the end of binge either way, which makes sense with hbo max set to launch here early 2025

  On 22/11/2024 at 10:19, whatwhat say what said:

they want the rights presumably to bundle with their other contracts, but do they buy the tech with those rights?

that'll be the end of binge either way, which makes sense with hbo max set to launch here early 2025

Probably why binge are offering 12 month deals for $5 a month at the moment

  On 22/11/2024 at 10:19, whatwhat say what said:

they want the rights presumably to bundle with their other contracts, but do they buy the tech with those rights?

that'll be the end of binge either way, which makes sense with hbo max set to launch here early 2025

Undoubtedly they get the tech but will they use it. Much cheaper to have an identical world wide platform serviced from a low cost country.

Merging the DAZN Australia content with Kayo content in the short term will be a challenge especially in setting subscription charges.

Watching the 4K cricket yesterday was a real pleasure.. other than our batting

  On 22/11/2024 at 22:57, Dr. Gonzo said:

Probably why binge are offering 12 month deals for $5 a month at the moment

yeah i saw and a foxtel employee and i shared the joke - like binge will exist in 12 months

As it stands I'll have up until April on my current Kayo subscription but will be cancelling. Really don't want to and I do appreciate the Members price but it's just a bit much at this point of the year which the Xmas period to come. We'll see how it goes but I think there could be a lot more pub going. 

DAZN (pronounced Dah-Zone) deal to buy Foxtel almost done. Expected to close before Christmas.

DAZN, which broadcasts the NFL, MMA and UEFA Women’s Champions League in Australia, emerged as the likely buyer for Foxtel after talks broke down between News Corp and US private equity firm Platinum earlier this year over the former’s unrealistic asking price.

The deal to sell Foxtel for an undisclosed sum could be completed before Christmas, three sources with knowledge of the deal said. Foxtel’s debt load is about $1.2 billion.

I would not expect many changes in 2025 but 2026 could be interesting. It seems that streamers in the US are moving away from the costly subscription model to cheap subscription fees with ads. (See for example Disney). Hopefully it doesn't happen here but hard to see how Kayo could ever be profitable without ads

https://www.theage.com.au/business/companies/british-streamer-closes-in-on-foxtel-20241209-p5kww0.html

 

Interestingly DAZN like Foxtel is owned by a multi billionaire:

Blavatnik is one of the world’s richest men, with an estimated net worth of $46 billion. DAZN is run by Shay Segev, formerly chief executive of British gaming firm Entain, which operates Ladbrokes in Australia.

DAZN has also been rumoured to be strengthening ties with Saudi Arabia for some time. It recently signed a deal to broadcast the Saudi Pro League in several major international markets. The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), which is chaired by Crown Prince Mohamad bin Salman, has been heavily linked to a deal to buy a 10 per cent stake of DAZN, which would value the company at $1 billion.

Edited December 10, 2024Dec 10 by Diamond_Jim

  On 10/12/2024 at 03:13, Diamond_Jim said:

I would not expect many changes in 2025 but 2026 could be interesting. It seems that streamers in the US are moving away from the costly subscription model to cheap subscription fees with ads. (See for example Disney). Hopefully it doesn't happen here but hard to see how Kayo could ever be profitable without ads

Also worth noting;

 

Starting from 30 November, Binge will offer live and on-demand sport, including the AFLW Grand Final, WBBL Grand Final, Men's Big Bash League, Super Netball, World Surfing League, Women's Golf, all Kayo Minis of the F1, and Fox Sports-produced magazine shows. During the winter, Binge will also broadcast NRL and AFL games on Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays with no ad breaks during play.

 

Not sure how this all works tbh.

dazn (which i refuse to call da zone, it's daz n all the way for me) is in ridiculous amounts of debt and have an appalling record for streaming services

their rollout for serie a coverage has seen them taken to court by the italian govt; their nfl gamepass has been riddled with bugs and errors

a friend of mine who said to me that this was 'on' over the weekend believes the tech is a huge part of the appeal for dazn, with the streaming set-up and capabilities of stream motion (kayo, binge) a possibly signficant improvement over their current architecture and core set-up, not to mention their design and usability

of course, the same was true when disney bought bamtech from the mlb only to get it, get the techs to look under the hood, and realise they'd been gordon farkas'd

Edited December 10, 2024Dec 10 by whatwhat say what