Fox Sports

For the first time on Australian subscription television, FOX SPORTS 1HD/1, FOX SPORTS 2HD/2 and FOX SPORTS 3HD/3 will offer captioning for a range of live locally produced broadcasts of Australian sporting competitions including NRL, AFL, Hyundai A-League, Super Rugby, the National One-Day Cup and KFC Twenty20 Big Bash, as well as its most popular magazine shows such as NRL on FOX and The Rugby Club.

FOX SPORTS chief executive, Mr David Malone, said: “I am pleased to announce that from October 1, FOX SPORTS will provide live captioning across a wide-encompassing range of our most popular live local sports telecasts and magazine shows.

“This builds on our strong commitment to continue to deliver the best coverage to all our viewers, maintaining our position as Australia’s leading sports broadcaster.”

The live captioning service to FOX SPORTS channels will be delivered by the leading deafness services and captioning innovator, Ai-Media.

It may be two years away, but already talk about the London 2012 Olympics is gearing up. The main stadium for the 2012 Olympics in London is near completion already, amid talk of the huge expense to put on the event straining the country’s economy in the recent Global Economic Crisis.

Here is Australia, the next Olympics will be televised on both Nine and Foxtel. Last night (July 28), Nine hosted an event launching advertising packages to an audience of 350 guests in Willoughby.

Nine will go to market with 18 sponsorship packages including four at the highest level estimated to be worth $10 million each.

Nine CEO David Gyngell rallied the Nine staff assembled for the launch, boldly declaring that under his watch, the network is more focussed on News, current affairs, quality Australian drama and great sporting events.

On air promos for the Olympics will start 6 months prior to the event in 2012 while former gold medal winners Grant Hackett and Giaan Rooney are signed to the network and are available to work with sponsors.

Source: TSR.

FOX SPORTS continues its tour of the British Isles with the Australian cricket team as the Aussies prepare to face Pakistan on neutral soil.

Ricky Ponting’s men will look to continue their recent dominance of Pakistan when the two nations collide for two Twenty20 Internationals and two Tests in England this month.

After a disappointing ODI series loss to England, the Aussies turn their attention to the Twenty20 and Test arenas to battle a Pakistan outfit still rebuilding from a disastrous tour of Australia last summer.

The Australian squad for the two-Test series takes on a different shape to the unit that toured New Zealand with great success in March, with selectors forced to make a handful of changes due to injuries.

Talented NSW bat Usman Khawaja and all-rounder Stephen O’Keefe where named in the 14-man Test squad after Phil Hughes and Nathan Hauritz were both ruled out. Tasmanian wicketkeeper Tim Paine was also included after regular gloveman Brad Haddin withdrew with an elbow injury.

FOX SPORTS commentator and former Test paceman Brendon Julian said the VB Pakistan Series will provide vital preparation for Australia ahead of next summer’s home Ashes series.

“Australia will be approaching this Test series against Pakistan as the beginning of their Ashes campaign,” said Julian

“With a few regular players out through injury it will give them an opportunity to have a look at a few of the younger guys ahead of our summer. By the end of this series we should know who is in the mix for places in the first test team for the Ashes,” he said.

Julian said it’s an especially important series for the Australian bowling attack.

“It will be good to see how the likes of Doug Bollinger and Mitchell Johnson are progressing, particular with Mitchell coming back from injury,” he said.

“I think there’s also an opportunity for Stephen Smith to make his mark as a bowler in this series and really start to put some pressure on Nathan Hauritz as our front-line spinner,” he said.

Coverage of the VB Pakistan Series begins with the first Twenty20 International on Tuesday 6 July, from 1.30am AEST, LIVE and EXCLUSIVE on FOX SPORTS 3HD & FOX SPORTS 3.

Once again FOX SPORTS coverage of the VB Pakistan Series will extend beyond the match broadcasts, with www.foxsports.com.au to feature all the latest news, match reports, live scoring and video content to keep fans across the action in the UK.

Regular news and match highlights will also be available on the FOX SPORTS News Channel (Ch 513).

FOX SPORTS coverage of the 2010 VB Pakistan Series is available to FOXTEL and AUSTAR subscribers.

Following on from last Tuesday’s live web stream of the rugby tour match between Australian Barbarians and England in Perth, Foxsports.com.au will enhance the experience for web users for tonight’s second clash in Gosford.

Tonight’s Bluetongue Stadium clash follows last week’s dramatic 28-all draw at ME Bank Stadium, where foxsports.com.au produced an experimental Australia-first live web stream of the action.

There will be no television coverage of tonight’s match, due to the late confirmation of the schedule.  In order to provide Australian sports fans with access to the game, the FOX SPORTS website will again stream vision of what is shaping as another fast and fiery encounter.

Jon Marquard, FOX SPORTS Chief Operating Officer, said the trial web stream of last week’s clash proved very successful.

“Reaction to last week’s live stream was exceptional given it was our first attempt and that we were very much trialling the technology we had available,” said Marquard.

“The vision on the stream was high quality and the fans enjoyed having the opportunity to watch a game that wasn’t available on television or via any other platform.”

Marquard said some enhancements will be applied to tonight’s web stream from Bluetongue Stadium.

“A lot of the feedback from users last week was that they wanted to hear some commentary, so we’ve made the appropriate upgrades and will have our rugby experts Rod Kafer and Brendan Cannon providing live insights during the broadcast,” he said.

“Given the nature of the feed, we want to let the pictures speak for themselves so their role will be to provide specialist insights on the game as it develops and answer questions from viewers, rather than call the action play by play,” he added.

Users will also be able to interact with the commentators, asking questions using the feedback forum, by emailing them at therugbyclub@foxsports.com.au.

The LIVE web stream of tonight’s match will commence at 7.30pm AEST and can be accessed from the FOX SPORTS homepage at www.foxsports.com.au. The web stream can be accessed ONLY within Australia as FOX SPORTS does not hold international rights to the match.

For more information on tonight’s web stream, fans are asked to read the live streaming FAQ’s available on the FOX SPORTS website.

In what could be a sign of a possible full time 3D channel, the Fox Spots 3D channel 200 has remained on air since Saturday nights’ broadcast of the French Open Women’s Singles Final and its subsequent replays throughout Sunday.

The channel currently simply has a static message and the Fox Sports 3D logo telling viewers to stay tuned for further developments. There appears to be no actual 3D TV at the moment, unlike the temporary free to air 3D channel which generally plays a demonstration loop.

So far, there have been two events aired in live 3D on Fox Sports 3D. Having the channel on air full time suggests there will be more to come, especially considering numerous soccer matches are now covered in 3D such as many of the World Cup Games which can be seen free to air on digital channel 40.

Fox Sports 3D can be seen by Foxtel subscribers who have both the sports package and the HD package.

Samantha Stosur’s courageous French Open Final defeat has set a new tennis record on FOX SPORTS, reaching 720,000 viewers across the nation on Saturday night.
 
Her hard-fought loss to Italian Francesca Schiavone, which was broadcast on FOX SPORTS 2 & FOX SPORTS 2HD, also scored a record average audience for an individual tennis match of 329,000.
 
The Final was exclusively broadcast in 3D on the FOX SPORTS 3D Channel and was the first international 3D broadcast provided to an Australian audience.
 
The result capped a huge fortnight of tennis from Roland Garros, where FOX SPORTS recorded its highest ever ratings result for a Grand Slam tournament.
 
FOX SPORTS CEO David Malone said the ratings result was indicative of the growing support for our latest female tennis star.
 
“Australian tennis fans have waited a few years to see one of our players in a Grand Slam final and the support for Sam grew consistently throughout her remarkable run in Paris,” said Malone.
 
“Achieving the highest ratings result ever recorded on the channel for a Grand Slam tennis tournament is testament to Samantha’s achievement.”
 
“Unfortunately she wasn’t able to bring home the trophy, but she won’t have to wait long for another shot at a Grand Slam title with Wimbledon just around the corner. We are expecting tennis fans to get right behind Samantha and the rest of the Aussie contenders when our live coverage of Wimbledon gets under way on June 21.”

Just to add – combined with an average of around 1.1 million watching on channel Nine as well, that’s nearly 1.5 million watching the final live late Saturday night. The peak through all outlets – including pay TV, free to air metro and regional would easily have topped 3 million.

FOX SPORTS has expanded its portfolio of world-class motorsport by securing rights to the Australian Superbike Championships, effective immediately.

The Australian Superbike Championships (ASBK) is Australia’s premier motorcycling championship, contested over seven rounds across four states and territories. The series brings together Australia’s best riders and leading world class manufacturers.

FOX SPORTS has assumed the rights for the remainder 2010 series, after One HD provided coverage of the opening round from Phillip Island in February.

A 90-mintue highlights package from the second round of the series, from Darwin’s Hidden Valley Raceway, will be screened on Thursday 10 June.

FOX SPORTS will provide prime time highlights packages from each remaining round of the ASBK series this season.

Soames Treffry, Director FOX SPORTS Channels, said the Australian Superbike Championships is a welcome addition to FOX SPORTS.

“The Australian Superbike Championships has a good following and is a strong addition to our motorsport family, which includes live and exclusive coverage of the Superbike World Championship,” said Treffry.

“Fans love both series and so having both on FOX SPORTS will be advantageous for Superbike followers.”

Yarrive Konsky, of International Entertainment Group, said the deal with FOX SPORTS will expose ASBK to a greater audience.

“The success that FOX SPORTS has had with the Superbike World Championship has seen the likes of Troy Bayliss and Troy Corser become household names in Australia,” he said.

“This is a big step forward for not only the Australian Superbike Championships, its riders and teams, but also the many fans of the sport around the country that will now have greater access to the all the thrilling action the sport provides.”

FOX SPORTS coverage of the Australian Superbike Championships is available to FOXTEL and AUSTAR subscribers.

FOX SPORTS News will keep the legions of football fans up-to-date with all the latest news as it unfolds at the 2010 Football World Cup.

FOX SPORTS News will present the Castrol Edge WORLD CUP REPORT LIVE from South Africa throughout the World Cup finals, with the first episode to screen on Friday 11 June at 8.00am AEST.

The half-hour program will be hosted by respected football commentators Simon Hill, Andy Harper and Paul Trimboli, who will be joined by a collection of the game’s leading experts including Mark Bosnich, Robbie Slater and Kevin Muscat, as well as other daily guests, to provide insight and analysis throughout the tournament.

The Castrol Edge WORLD CUP REPORT will kick-off with the Socceroos near Johannesburg, before travelling with them to Durban, Rustenburg and Nelspruit for their three group games.

Featuring in-depth interviews with the Socceroos stars as well as the latest news from the Australian team and other squads, each episode will include match reports on every completed match, as well as previews of forthcoming games. There will also be regular updates on Australia’s World Cup bid for 2018 and 2022.

Meanwhile, Australia’s leading general sports website, foxsports.com.au, will keep lovers of the round ball game informed with LIVE updates throughout the tournament. Fans can also get in on the World Cup action by registering their team in the Fantasy World Cup competition at http://footballworldcupfantasy.foxsports.com.au/

FOX SPORTS News’ Castrol Edge WORLD CUP REPORT is available to FOXTEL and AUSTAR subscribers, and will screen LIVE each match day* on the FOX SPORTS News Channel (Ch 513) at 8.00am AEST, with encore screenings to follow throughout the day.

*Castrol Edge WORLD CUP REPORT premieres on Friday, June 11, with the final episode screening on Monday, July 12, 2010. The LIVE program will screen daily, except for the six days when there are no matches scheduled, namely July 1, 2, 5, 6, 9 and 10 (AEST).

With the 2011 Rugby World Cup merely 15 months away, Robbie Deans’ Wallabies have their sights set firmly on a successful 2010 season beginning with four toughTest match encounters in June.

The Wallabies will begin their domestic schedule against Fiji this Saturday night, before facing off with 2003 & 2007 Rugby World Cup nemesis England in a two-Test series for the Cook Cup.

Finally, before they embark on yet another Tri Nations campaign against the might of South Africa and New Zealand, the men in gold face a one-off Test against 2009 triple-crown winners Ireland.

Once again FOX SPORTS will deliver LIVE and UNINTERRUPTED coverage of every Wallabies Test, with additional LIVE coverage of blockbuster internationals featuring the All Blacks, Springboks and France throughout the month of June.

The FOX SPORTS commentary team will be headed by the nation’s best rugby commentator, Greg Clark, alongside a panel of the code’s foremost experts and analysts in former Wallabies Phil Kearns, Greg Martin and sideline commentator Rod Kafer.

FOX SPORTS coverage of all Wallabies matches will also feature in-depth pre and post-game analysis from The Rugby Club’s Nick McArdle and Brendan Cannon, who will be joined on the panel by a current member of the Wallabies squad at each Test.

FOX SPORTS will also continue to provide rugby fans with unprecedented access and insight into the matches through frequent interviews with the key players and coaches before, during and after each Wallabies Test.

Soames Treffry, Director FOX SPORTS Channels, said FOX SPORTS will continue its commitment to providing Australian rugby fans with the nation’s premier rugby broadcast.

“We are always looking at ways to enhance our rugby coverage to provide fans with the most complete coverage of their sport and look forward in particular to the upcoming Test match schedule with so much quality rugby on offer,” said Treffry.

“The whole country is behind the Wallabies and after watching some of our up and coming stars dominate the Super 14 competition, there is a real sense that the Aussies are building towards another golden era,” he said.

As always, FOX SPORTS coverage of the Wallabies will extend beyond the match broadcasts, with www.foxsports.com.au to feature all the latest news, match reports, live scoring and video content to keep fans in the know across the June Test series.

Regular news and match highlights will also be available on the FOX SPORTS News Channel (Ch 513). FOX SPORTS coverage of International Rugby is available to FOXTEL and AUSTAR subscribers.

SBS has confirmed that as many as 15 World Cup Soccer matches will be able to be seen in 3D including Australia Vs Germany on June 14.

The 3D soccer matches will be seen on digital channel 40 and replayed on a loop until the next match airs. Digital channel 40 is the same channel that Nine will use for 3D coverage of the three State of Origin Rugby League matches – with the first airing on May 26.

And if you were tossing up whether to buy a 3D TV or not, then Foxtel also have come to the 3D party announcing that they will broadcast the soccer match between the Socceroos and New Zealand on Monday May 24 in 3D on FOX Sports 3D – channel 200.

But what will you need? In order to view the Foxtel match, you will need a 3D TV, an IQ2, sports as part of your package and have paid the extra to be able to receive HD channels on Foxtel. It does not look like Foxtel will charge any extra for channel 200. While this is a one off event, they will have it on air before Nine’s State of Origin and there will no doubt be many more event covered in 3D and broadcast on Foxtel.

Meanwhile, 3D TV on free to air will utilise temporary spectrum allocated for 3D for a period of just two months. Digital channel 40 will be used by both SBS for the soccer and Nine for the State of Origin. All you need to see the free to air digital offerings will be a 3D TV. Nothing more. The special allocation covers Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. Nine have stated that Wollongong and Newcastle will be covered for the State of Origin in 3D but we cannot confirm if those two cities will be included in the 3D soccer broadcasts.

And then what? After these major sporting events are over, no doubt there will be many others announced in 3D. Like the uptake of digital TV and high definition, the driving force initially will be sports. Already a number of overseas events are being covered in 3D, some of which may end up here as well on Fox Sports 3D or otherwise.

And what of all those movies lately on 3D? Well, no doubt we will see them in 3D first via Blue Ray, then maybe premium 3D movie channels.

3D is here and whether it succeeds in home entertainment is yet to be seen. It will ultimately come down to available content as to the speed of uptake. Certainly a good time for sports fans though.