C4’s Racing Plans Back On Track

Channel 4’s plans for a racing channel were revived today when it announced the submission of a £750m bid for the broadcasting rights to Britain’s 59 racecourses, as part of a consortium with BSkyB and Arena Leisure. Under the name of Go Racing, the three have this morning presented a rights proposal to racecourse executives, guaranteeing £400m to the sport over the next 10 years.

C4 withdrew its bid for the rights earlier this year, blaming “factionalism” within the racing industry for the inability to agree terms of the deal (see Channel 4 Withdraws Its Bid For Horse Racing Rights). Since then, Carlton Communications has reportedly offered £400m for the rights (see Carlton Makes Late Bid For Horseracing Rights).

Go Racing is promising an instant multi-platform solution for British horseracing. A dedicated channel produced by Channel 4 will broadcast nine hours each day, with four to six races an hour, and will be available on Sky Digital and ONdigital platforms. The consortium will also facilitate on-screen betting through an interactive TV service and website.

Channel 4 and the BBC will co-ordinate to improve terrestrial scheduling of races, and Sky Sports will also increase its coverage of the sport.

David Brook, channel 4’s director of strategy, said: “Collectively, we are committed to this proposal and this proposal alone as the best solution for British racing. We believe the combination of Channel 4’s unrivalled racing coverage, the proven ability of Sky and ourselves to market this and other sports, the distributions available through Sky Digital and the interactive technology pioneered by Sky and Arena quite simply make this bid unbeatable.”

The offer is open for acceptance until 10 November and will need approval from enough courses to make up a minimum of 70% of the total UK off course betting revenue.

Channel 4: 020 7306 8666 BSkyB: 020 7705 3905 Holborn PR (Arena Leisure): 020 7929 5599