Before the Bid
rlhttps://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/feb/04/sky-profits-rise-uk-and-germany-pay-tvrl
After the Bid
rlhttps://www.wsj.com/articles/sky-earnings-boosted-by-subscriber-growth-in-u-k-germany-1429608660rl

I reckon they'll lose a few over the summer and then report another bumper harvest once the PL season starts up again....

The figures aren't great but bear in mind that TV ratings across the board are down due to the sheer number of channels these days and the rise of streaming services like Netflix, even the massive TV shows like Eastenders, Strictly and XFactor have lost millions of viewers in recent years.

I do think the standard of refereeing and lack of big name stars is hampering the game though, hopefully the marquee rule helps fits one of those. I also think it's long overdue for SKY to overhaul their coverage, new presenters and new graphics please!

I ditched Sky Sports this year after donkeys years subscribed. The reduced and inferior coverage of SL coupled with a hefty monthly price tag tipped the balance for me. I only subscribed to Sky Sports for the RL so it represents awful value for money for me. A couple of games a week is simply criminal for a full time sports channel. I'm subscribed to Premier for a fraction of the price and get EVERY single game every week from the NRL.

So I get a better product, more games, for less outlay. At the moment, SL is a bit like watching semi-pro after watching NRL so I don't find I'm missing out on much.

It's a sad state of affairs for the game in the UK. It feels like it's fading away slowly. There's little pizzazz in our game at the moment, and Sky's apathy towards us is nailing the coffin lid shut.

I really don't know why anybody pays for any Sports Channels when all are freely available on the internet.

Relax a bit everyone! Although figures probably slightly down,a large number of people tune in for kick off.

Thus in the past programme average for 6pm sat game boosted by the fact programme was just 2hrs. Now thur programme is often 2hrs 45 min, but lots only watch 8 till 9.45, thus hitting the average.

The Aviva Prems average viewing figures on BT rose 40% last year to 119,000 and have risen another 6% this year which currently is beating SL viewing figures. When the RFL took SKYs cash for a long-term deal last time I remember the usual suspects on here saying that BT wouldn't last long etc so it was the right decision. Hmmm. As someone who watches both sports and channels, BT are miles ahead of the game.

Probably as BT Sport 1 + 2 is currently free if you're a BT broadband/line rental customer of which there are over 2 million including me. However as of 1 August that same service will cost another fiver a month to pay for the £900m European soccer rights. Because of this I've cancelled my BT Sport subscription ( & will do the same for Sky Sports) and am left with BT Sport lite.

EditBT Sport Lite only includes BT Sport 1. You'll be able to see the Premier League, SPFL football and Aviva Premiership Rugby on BT Sport 1. But to watch other content like the Champions League, you'll need the BT Sport Pack. '"

Free service v pay TV.

You don't get a very good deal if you mainly subscribe to sky sports for RL. To justify cost of subscription it should have three games a week plus a champ game plus two shows.

In oz fox subscription gets you every nrl game, SL games, under 20's games, nsw and Qland cup games and 7 NRL shows a week!

It doesn't matter if the Aviva Prem is free with broadband or pay tv (BT is a combination of both btw), its ratings have gone up by tens of thousands in two years on a channel that actually puts on a good show. Attendances for the AP have also gone up the last 2 years and is attributed by some fans as down to new BT viewers going to games. When the AP was on SKY it was seen by many fans as if SKY had lost interest in it. Does that ring any bells with anyone?

Damn, to go from 169k in 2012 to 114k in 2015, that is one hell of a drop off.
I'm trying to think if there are any mitigating factors that might explain the decline, other than people just losing interest.

Lets see how many people watch the test series in the autumn which is free to air on the BBC.that is a bigger indicator to me on interest in RL over sky and SL as i myself have sky and have been very close to ridding myself of the soccer obsessed company of late but have stayed as i do like golf,cricket and darts as well as RL and that is covered for me but it is very expensive as a package for what you get.i guess a fair few have canceled though in recent times.

Does anybody know if people who record the game or watch it on Sky Go are included in the figures. I for a while watched games on my iPad using one of my family members Sky as I didn't have it myself. Does that stuff factor into the figures because they'll have been a rise of people who do that.

Yes, the fact that the two televised matches have been moved from Friday-Saturday to Thursday-Friday, and the fact that William Eve's statistics are wholly unreliable (they are based on the BARB weekly top 10s, meaning he includes 65 matches from 2012 but only 50 from 2014, despite Sky televising an additional 13 matches in 2014 due to the addition of Catalan home games).

Never, he'd never twist stats to suit a lifelong agenda.

Waiting 2 minute for a decision that could be made in 2 seconds?