Should the All Ireland Championships be free to air?
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
The Clare Byrne Show on Newstalk. With Aviva Insurance.
Well, as we've been hearing, it was quite the weekend of quarterfinal football in the GAA. And for many, it proved difficult to see the matches. Some of them weren't shown on terrestrial TV. And some people who had paid to watch the games had trouble watching them on GAA+. Maybe it was the same for some of you. Do let us know. Larry Donnelly is law lecturer at the University of Galway, columnist with the Journal.ie and a huge GAA fan.
What challenges did fans face while watching GAA matches?
So what are your frustrations, Larry?
Yeah, well, first of all, I think that at this late stage of the championship, I think there's no good reason why RTEK isn't broadcasting quarterfinals in the senior championship. I just don't get it. I understand resources are limited. I understand the World Cup is a further drain on those resources, but there is just no good reason, in my view, why the quarterfinals aren't available free to air. And then when you go on to GA+, Unfortunately, the stream was not great. It kept glitching every time, and you pay 15 euro for the privilege of one match. To me, that just isn't good enough.
Now, there's an article in the Irish Times about this where Dennis Walsh writes about the rugby and says that the Champions Cup, in which Leinster, of course, were playing, was not free to air. It was on ITV4, which you need a complicated setup to get. And there was no outrage over that. Do you understand why that is? Why the GAA in particular seems to come in for so much flack about this stuff?
Absolutely. That's because these are our national games. One of the most special things about this country is the GAA. That's one of the reasons why I, as a transplant, grew to it so greatly, because these games represent the very best players. of what this country is all about. And we expect, and I think we have the right to expect, at this late stage of the championship, that these matches will be available free to air so that everyone in the country can take in what is an extraordinary, unique spectacle that Ireland rightly cherishes.
But we watch the World Cup matches as well, and we want those free to air too. And there's only so much that the broadcasters, in particular RTE, can do.
Oh, absolutely. And look, I'm fully aware of that. I'm not being irrational on this front. But what I am saying, and I understand people have a multiplicity of different tastes in sports, and of course, not everything can be free to air.
Why are quarterfinals not broadcasted on RTE?
My point is that at this late stage of the championship, that these matches, as our national games, that these should be free to air and available to everybody. I think that there is a distinguishable case that could be made vis-a-vis the GAA and all other sports, soccer, rugby, golf, whatever you have.
OK, but you did say that you are willing to pay and you did pay to watch the games on Saturday. But what was happening with the service? It wasn't working properly.
Yeah, I've had decidedly mixed experiences with GAA+. So, for instance, on Saturday, the first match, Cork and Mayo, the stream was perfect. The second match, however, Cary and Tyrone, it kept glitching. It kept going to slow motion in and out. Now, I understand the experience of others on Saturday. was different. And indeed, I've had good experiences with GAA Plus in the past, but I've also had bad experiences as I did on Saturday. And when you are paying 15 euro per match, I think that entitles you to expect a pretty good feed, a pretty good stream. And it just wasn't good enough on Saturday. And again, I've had mixed experiences. Other people had good experiences on Saturday. But the bottom line is across the board, it should be a good experience when you're paying a pretty decent chunk for a match.
I know that there are annual subscription rates, which are quite reasonable. I don't have one, but I paid 30 euro on Saturday. And I can say safely that 15 euro of it was well spent. 15 euro of it, I might as well put it down the drain.
Right, so what's the solution then? I mean, do you expect RTE to pick up the tab if the games were free on GAA Plus?
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:01–0:35
2
What challenges did fans face while watching GAA matches?
0:35–2:34
3
Why are quarterfinals not broadcasted on RTE?
2:34–4:09
4
What are the issues with the GAA+ streaming service?
4:09–4:57
5
How does the public perceive the availability of GAA matches?
4:57–9:05
6
What are the arguments for making GAA matches free to air?
9:05–13:17
Speakers
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