Participant Obersvations 8/8/18 - The End of Foxtel Now?

A real blow to my television consumption patterns this week, with the announcement that Foxtel may phase out their Foxtel Now streaming service, in favour of skinny bundle, stand-alone sport and entertainment streaming services.

This sucks, because I get sport and entertainment in the one package now, and I have some concerns that I'll get the same level of content as I do now at the same price and the same convenience if I have to subscribe to numerous skinny bundles.

For example, the sports bundle has been reported to be around $20-25 a month. If the entertainment bundle is the same, plus any HD add-ons, it could easily go past my current subscription of $54 a month.

It was revealed in Mediaweek today that survey data is believed to be behind the decision to go this way, in particular these two graphs from Roy Morgan and Telsyte:

From Roy Morgan: 

From Telsyte:

The Roy Morgan data shows Foxtel is the only subscription TV service with negative growth from 2017-2018.

The Telsyte data shows 54% annual growth in SVD subscriptions from 2017-2018, and the report also suggests 100% growth in the SVOD market by 2022.

Clearly, Foxtel want to tap into the SVOD growth market, as their existing subscription model is stagnant at best.

I understand this move, but I always thought the skinny bundles (Project Matian and Project Jupiter) would happen in addition to Foxtel Now, but I guess the writing is on the wall with Foxtel Now.

It's also been widely reported that new Foxtel-Fox Sports CEO Patrick Delany is not enamoured with the Foxtel Now brand or product, that was launced by his predecessor Peter Tonagh.

This is something of a sunk cost now for Foxtel, because they also launched a Foxtel Now STU to accompany the product - what will happen with those units if Foxtel Now is phased out? Will it support the new skinny bundles? I guess they could update the software to support it, but I'm not fully across if they could do that.

I was so looking forward to watching the cricket with Foxtel Now, but it's clear Foxtel want to use their new cricket rights to launch the new skinny products, so I'm not sure what will happen. 

The cricket season is only over a month away, so whatever happens will happen soon I would think, especially if Foxtel want to leverage their existing customers over to the new service in time for the cricket.

Participant Observations 7/8/18 - AFLW Broadcast Coverage

It was revealed late last week that the AFLW competition fixture could be changed to six home and away rounds plus two rounds of finals, despite two new teams being introduced this season, bringing the total number of teams to 10.

The players are upset, as they see this format as treating their competition with disrespect. Players often move interstate for the competition, spend longer training in the pre-season than playing in the competition, and teams would not play each other at least once under the proposed format.

Obviously, there are logistical reasons why the AFL may see see a compact fixture as necessary. Currently, the AFL has to consider scheduling AFLX, AFLW, and the AFL pre-season competition before the AFL season proper. There are only so many weeks in the year, and unless you are willing to start the AFLW earlier in the new year, or late in the current year, they you will have overlap between competitions, with games from different competitions being played on the same day across the country. This happens somewhat already, with AFLW and AFL pre-season games occasionally scheduled on the same day earlier this year.

Overlapping competitions would seemingly reduce the AFL's ability to have a year-round presence, but to schedule the competitions so they run sequentially and without overlap would also position the AFL in direct competition against other sports in the summer, with tennis, cricket, soccer, and basketball, among others, all in-season from about November through to March. 

The AFLW is also a maturing competition, and until the quality of the average female player has been allowed to develop, it could be argued that the quality of the game, especially over a drawn-out season, could result in less of a spectacle.

This makes it hard to garner the attention of sponsors and television broadcasters, as was reported on Footy Classified this week:



The commentators debated if television coverage of every AFLW game was necessary, with some saying it was fundamental to the future of the game, and others suggesting to start the season with 'Match of the Round' coverage, and then work up towards complete television coverage by the end of the competition.

However, if the AFL can't get the television coverage they want for the AFLW, I believe this is the perfect opportunity for the AFL to produce their own coverage of the AFLW and show it on their own online and mobile platforms. Coverage could be free with embedded advertising, or be supported with a variety of subscriptions, such as a $20 season pass, or $5 micro-transaction on a round-by-round basis.

A longer season could be scheduled for the AFLW, with the early season games that are in competition with other sports being available via their own platforms. Then, as the competition from other sports dissipates, and as the AFLW season heads towards it's conclusion, the broadcast coverage ramps up with more games on traditional broadcast coverage. Traditional broadcasters don't have to carry as much risk, as they don't have to show many early season games where the quality of the games and interest in the competition is probably not as high.

This is exactly what Cricket Australia has done with women's matches previously, and for memory, the online numbers of people watching were better than expected.

Additionally, all research suggests that younger people are consuming more content online and on mobile devices, so by shifting the game to those platforms, you have a way to reach the younger demographic that sports would try to engage with.

It would also allow them to test their ability to produce their own games, which gives them data and logistical information about costs, production set-ups, travel, distribution, engagement, revenues, and so on.

More importantly, that information would possibly put them in a better position for when the next round of broadcasting rights come up for sale. By producing their own games, they would have some idea of what control they have over the coverage, what revenues they could possibly earn, what their potential reach is, and so on, and weigh up that information against the benefits of going with free-to-air, subscription television, or another new media player such as Facebook or Google/YouTube.

Tennis Australia has taken back their own rights, and while admittedly tennis is a global game with global markets to sell rights to, they are more in control of their product and have become less reliant on the performance of Australian players in the tournament to generate revenue from their broadcasting rights. The NRL has also reportedly taken back some control over their digital rights from Telstra as well, possibly in a move to produce their own games or at least have more control over their online coverage.

Perhaps a long term solution would be to have a fully-fledged AFLW competition running in the winter, the true seasonal home of Australian Rules Football. A winter competition could accommodate a longer season, with fully developed players and coaches competing in better quality games. Combined with the AFL men's competition, the additional games in the winter that the AFLW provides could lead to almost daily coverage of AFL games in some format on television from March through to October.

But until the AFLW matures and finds the corporate and broadcasting support that that scenario requires, I believe there is no better time for the league to at least contemplate producing their own games. 

Participant Observations 7/8/18 - AFL Rule Changes

My take on the rule changes being talked about in the AFL this year:

Firstly, the rules need to change. At times, the current games looks like a rolling scrum, and it's not uncommon to see all 36 players on the field in one quarter of the ground. Yes, 5 games this round were decided by less than a goal, but that's one round out of 20. For the majority of the rest of the season, the game has been near unwatchable. The drop in TV audiences attest to this.

It's visually a mess. And this leads to the major reason why I think the rules need a change - if I'm a broadcaster, who's paid billions of dollars or the rights, I want the game to be aesthetically pleasing. I understand that a visually perfect game is an impossibility, but the current game-style is too unattractive for casual viewers in my opinion.

Having said that, paradigm-shifting rules are not necessary. If you look at the history of the game, the rules of the game have been tweaked every few years, and that's all that I think is necessary - a few tweaks that on their own don't do a lot, but combined, enhance the game play. For example, there was a time in the history of the game where the kick off line was 20-yards out. It's been 10 yards for some time, but we shouldn't be blind to the idea that rules can and have changed over time.

I also don't think rule changes should be left up to the coaches alone. Coaches are there to win games, and they don't necessarily care how the game looks - winning is their priority, and no one blames them for that. Coaches, and players for that matter, should definitely be consulted, but not held solely responsible for advising on rule changes.

In addition to rule changes, I think games and seasons should be shortened. Players and coaches themselves are saying the games and season is too long, and I'd argue that a shorter season means less player injuries, and more games of consequence. In the NFL for example, teams only play 16 regular season games, so every game has a lot of consequence. While a shorter season may mean that a team that looses it's opening 4 games of the year has little to play for, I believe this could be alleviated with some inventive or dynamic fixturing. Perhaps after 66% of the season, the bottom 4 sides play off against each other for draft positions, or something like that. Ideally, I think an 18-round season is ideal - each team plays each other once, plus an extra round for 'rival' matches or some other 'cause' round. Games should also be shortened to around the 20-25 minute mark, so maybe make it 15 minute quarters with time on? And get rid of the countdown clock at games. Players know the time via runners. Crowds know the time via radio/mobile phones. Get rid of the unnecessary appearance of suspense.

I'd also advocate for either a floating fixture in the final round OR a week between the end of the season and finals. We don't need both. Either or. I understand the purpose of it - to give players an equal rest before finals, but both is too much, and as Ian Robinson on AFL 360, suggested, if you keep the bye after the final round, and keep the final round as a floating round, it floating round basically just becomes a tool for the TV networks to secure the largest audience. Again, while I don't have an issue with that per se, it does leave fans feeling cynical and jaded about the relationship between the game and the media. I also like the idea of a wildcard weekend, between the end of the season and the finals proper, where, say team 7 plays team 10, and 8 plays 9, in a play-off for the final two spots.

So, here are the rule changes I would like to see:

• A ball kicked or handballed over the boundary line results in a free-kick to the opposition. A ball rushed over the boundary line is thrown in as normal. This motivates players to keep the ball in play, reducing boundary line throw-ins and associated congestion, and also leading to more direct play and higher scoring. I saw this rule in Adelaide, and I have no doubt it results in a more aesthetically pleasing, high scoring game.
• A reduction in the number of interchange rotations. Initially, I wasn't a fan of this idea, as I though fatigued players were more likely to get injured, but I think I've seen data that suggests that fatigued players are no more or less likely to get injured than non-fatigued payers. Also, fatigued players will be less likely to make contests and stoppages, so the game would open up a bit more, although another potential side-effect of this rule could be a drop-off in skill levels due to fatiguing.
• The 6-6-6 formation rule for all center square bounces. Obviously this rule would have the most impact late in close games by preventing coaches from flooding backlines. I also like the idea that one player from each team in the 50-metre arcs must be inside the goal square at the bounce downs.
• The 20-yard extended goal square. Obviously allows players kicking-in after a behind to send the ball deeper into play. It also gives the player who plays on from the goal square more room to run and carry before kicking off. And as was also identified in the VFL trial, kicking a behind is discouraged, as it gives the team kicking in more of an advantage. While this may discourage some teams from having a shot of goal, it could also potentially result in better goalkicking, as teams spend more time and effort in making sure they don't score a behind.
• Boundary umpires come in 10 metres from the boundary line for throw-ins. This would reduce the likelihood of repeat throw-ins and would move the ball back into the corridor. We already assess 15 meters for a kick, and I don't think it would have to be too precise, so no need for more markings on the field. Conversely, the grass could be cut on grounds to indicate where the 10m line would be.
• Automatic play-on for backward kicks that are marked inside the defensive 50m.Kicks have to start and finish inside the defensive 50m. A friend told me the coaches don't like this rule (probably because they all use it) but I remember seeing it in a pre-season comp a few years ago, and I think it would encourage teams without the ball to put forward pressure on the team with the ball to try and force a turnover.
• Eliminate the nominated ruckman rule, but keep the 'no third man up' rule. Teams should be able to figure out for themselves who is rucking and who is not. If a team sends up a third ruck, pay a free kick against. Teams will soon work it out.
• Throw the ball up at stoppages and at boundary throw-ins immediately. There is an unnecessary amount of gesticulating from umpires at stoppages, which slows the play down and allows more players to arrive at the contest.

That's all I can think of at the moment. If I think of any others, will update the post.

Another rule that came up over the weekend was the possible introduction of a red card for an 'unsportsmanlike' act, such as striking a player in a game. A West Coast player broke the jaw of a Fremantle player off the ball last weekend, and the West Coast player went on to kick a goal. Other Fremantle players then also targeted the West Coast player in question.

Before jumping on-board with the red card rule, I'd have some questions, such as: Do you also introduce a yellow card for lesser infractions? How long does someone get sent off for under a yellow card? What constitutes 'unsportsmanlike' behaviour? How far off the ball does it have to be? What if a player stages being hit/knocked out in an attempt to get another player red-carded. What if the player being struck has a glass jaw and is more susceptible to being knocked out? What if the action that knocked a player out was accidental, or can't clearly be determined as being deliberate?

I think some data and feedback is needed from the leagues where this rule is already in place, to gauge the impact of the rule, before deciding if this should be instituted as a rule.

Participant Observations 6/8/18 - VFL on Freeview

I wanted to share a way I was able to circumvent the Free-to-Air geolocated restrictions on broadcast content via the Freeview App.

Last Saturday afternoon, Channel 7 in Victoria broadcast a VFL game on one of their secondary channels, which trialed two of the new rules - The 6-6-6 formation for centre bounces, and the 18-yard extended goal square.

I checked the regular FTA guide to see if the game would be on any of the digital channels, but it was not, so I couldn't watch it via terrestrial FTA, or via the live streaming app of Channel 7.

However, the Freeview app asks users to input their postcode when they first open the app, so they get the content for that region. Why this app doesn't use GPS or geolocating to automatically determine the location of the viewer is a mystery, but it allowed me to enter a Victorian postcode and access the Victorian content.

Out of interest, I entered 3051, my old North Melbourne postcode, and there was no problems.

The vision was in SD, and a little pixelated at times, but I was able to see the trialing of these new rules live. Which was awesome. Much like the 'trickster' mindset, I think this inventiveness demonstrates the entrepreneurial mindset again.

Participant Observations 1/8/18 - Adelaide Trip/Herald Sun fan survey

Last weekend Joe Fluechter and I headed over to Adelaide for a HUGE weekend of footy.

It started on Friday night when we went to Norwood Oval to see Norwood vs Woodville/West Torrens.

On Saturday we went to my old high school Prince Alfred College and saw a 4ths game (!). We then stopped off at a pub in North Adelaide where we watched Richmond v Collingwood, before walking up to Prospect Oval to See North Adelaide vs Adelaide.

We then walked back into town, and along the way saw Darren Jarman at a bottle shop. I told him he was my favourite player growing up, and thanked him for all the enjoyment he gave me watching him play, for which he seemed genuinely happy about.

After meeting up with some mates in town, we went on to the Adelaide Oval, where we saw Adelaide vs Melbourne.

Finally, on Sunday, we headed down to a pub in Unley where we watched North Melbourne vs West Coast, before trekking over to Unley Oval to watch Sturt vs Central Districts. Then at the airport before flying home, we watched some of Fremantle vs Hawthorn on my phone in a bar.

So all up, 5 games live, and three games on TV, including one on my phone.

Needless to say, it was fucking epic. Of course there was plenty of drinking done in and around the footy, and it was awesome catching up with mates at the Adelaide Oval. I took my footy with us everywhere over the weekend (literally, everywhere), and so after the Crows game, we went down to the area behind the members grandstand and had a kick of footy, which will go down as one of the best ever!

Also, meeting Darren Jarman was a real surprise which I think both me and Joey enjoyed. Completely unexpected, and he seemed happy enough. I was happy with the way I approached us, and although he turned down the request for a photo, he did beep his car horn as he drove off.

Some other thoughts on the weekend:

- The SANFL rules about turning the ball over on a kick or handball out of bounds is excellent and should be adopted by the AFL. It results in heaps more play, and it seemed to us, higher scores and more skills.
- It was good going back to my old school, although everything seems a bit smaller than I remember!
- Would've like to get a look in at my old-scholars game as well, but I didn't think about it before we went over.
- The standard of the SANFL was generally very good, apart from on Sunday when the wind got up and made skills difficult. But the Friday game was very good, and the North Adelaide game had over 40 (!) goals kicked in total.
- Me and Joey have short-listed Perth and Darwin as the next possible places for a footy trip.
- I think I might retire my footy after this trip. He performed very well, but is getting a bit old. Joe and I had the idea that for each subsequent footy trip, we should by a new footy for it, and write on it where the footy trip was, and sign and date it. Then, even though it's a new footy, we would still kick it around on the trip, letting it get all the cuts and bruises as a mark of the trip.

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So the Herald Sun released the results of their Fan Survey this week, of which I also voted in:

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/more-news/footy-fans-survey-nearly-a-third-of-fans-say-their-enjoyment-of-the-game-has-diminished/news-story

It's now gone behind a paywall, but it did show that I'm in tune with most fans on some things, but way off the mark with others.

For instance, I'm definitely not a fan of Bruce McAvaney as the best commentator, but I think David King is the best analyst.

One's I got 'right':
- The Grand Final should be a day game.
- Protected zone is the worst rule

One's I got 'wrong':
- Reduce interchange numbers

Unfortunately the online article has gone behind a paywall now and I can't see it. It does make me think that most AFL fans are more conservative that I am, and it also shows how the free-to-air coverage dominates fans perspective of the game, as shown by most of the results being skewed in that direction.

Participant Observations 17/7/18 - Motivations for VPN Use

While I was at the ANZCA conference a few weeks ago, I sat in on a presentation about Artificial Intelligence, and representations of it in the media. The presentation talked about texts like Westworld and Terminator, as well as some other films I hadn't heard of, or considered viewing, such as Ex Machina, and Blade Runner 2049.

Given my love for Westworld and representations of AI, I thought I'd see if I could find these other texts, and find out more about other versions of AI representations outside of Westworld.

Specifically, I looked up Ex Machina, Blade Runner, Blade Runner 2049, Terminator Genisys, and Futureworld.

I began by looking through ALL of the catalogs that I have access to - Foxtel, Netflix, Amazon Video, and all the FTA on-demand apps.

I could ONLY find Blade Runner 2049 on the Foxtel Now catalogue. I also found Ghost in the Shell there, which was also a nice find (Scarlett Johansson).

Even so, unable to locate many of the other titles, and not wanting to purchase another subscription to Stan or iflix or anything else, I felt I had no option but to download the content illegally. So I switched on the VPN and got the content I needed.

The VPN allowed me to step around the blocking of Pirate Bay in Australia, and the content was downloaded relatively easily. The quality was ok (720p). I could have downloaded 1080p content, but the file sizes are significantly larger. It was then just a matter of copying the file over to a USB and playing it on my gaming PC so I could watch them on a large monitor.

I think this supports various other observations in the literature and through primary sources of information, that if a person is faced with a situation where they can't get the content they want easily, even where a legal option would have been preferred, an illegal path will be taken.

I don't feel like a pirate, so much as frustration at not being able to legitimately get the content I wanted. Perhaps this is the 'trickster' mindset, but I think because of the overt and deliberate use of VPN and the aversion to paying for it, while I would still classify it as Informal Media use, is probably more at the 'pirate' end of the spectrum here.

Some other observations is that the exercise demonstrated to me how limited some of the catalogs are on subscription OTT services, and that the FTA catch-up apps basically have no movies on them at all, suggesting how limited the rights are to have movie titles for FTA's.

Finally, I think my interest in AI is obviously the ethical questions it raises, and the implications it has for mankind more broadly, such as notions of doom. Most of these texts are set in the future, and I really like the different versions of the future these texts portray, whether it be minimalist, technological, post-apocalyptic, or perverse.

Participant Observations 13/7/18 - AFL Live Pass Subscriptions & the 3MT shit-show

On Monday this week, my credit card was charged $89.99 for a purchase I didn't remember making. The description on the bank statement said NRL Live Pass, which I have never used, and had no recollection of subscribing to.

At first, I thought the charges might have been incurred when I used the AFL Live Pass in New Zealand to watch the Swans play Geelong. But I looked at the terms and conditions attached to the AFL Live Pass, and the only stipulation was that the AFL Live Pass couldn't be used overseas... So either NZ doesn't count as 'overseas' or this term and condition isn't enforced.

What followed was a protracted back-and-forth with Telstra. I also lodged a claim for incorrect charges with my bank to see if I could get the charges refunded.

Anyways, while I was waiting for Telstra to get back to me - and I should say that I thought their customer service was slightly better than I thought it would be, other than the fact that their call-centre operators always spoke in sometimes barely legible, and that as soon as 9pm rolled around, they completely shut down their customer service, despite the chat service supposedly being 24x7 - I found out that the $89.99 was billed to me from an old subscription.

So AFL Live Pass works like this. There are effectively three points where you can subscribe: 1) Through the AFL website, 2) Through the app, and 3) Through the marketplace of your phone (i.e., the iPhone App Store, or Google Play etc). Now, Telstra Mobile customers can get the subscription for free, but ONLY if they subscribe through the app on their phone (i.e., option 2 above).

I initially had a recurring AFL Live Pass subscription through the AFL website (i.e., option 1 above), which I paid for when I started the research, back in 2016. Then, when I became a Telstra Mobile customer at the start of this year - specifically for the purpose of getting AFL Live Pass for free - I signed into the subscription for AFL Live Pass on my new phone (i.e., option 2 above). Inadvertently, I believed that this 'new' subscription would supersede my old subscription. However, this doesn't automatically happen, and I didn't realise I had to manually unsubscribe from my old subscription in order to avoid the recurring charges. Hence the confusion when my 'old' subscription automatically renewed.

However, this does highlight a point made during one of my research interviews - that the duplicate and multiple subscriptions that are required to access content such as sports rights could motivate consumers toward pirate behaviour. While it didn't happen in this instance, it was incredibly frustrating, and I can easily see how such an outcome could occur.

So what happened? After using some colourful language to tell the Telstra case manager how disappointed I was, they said they would credit my phone account with $89.99. I also cancelled the claim for incorrect charges with the bank. So no refund, but still a better outcome than nothing. I've also deleted my duplicate account - at least I think I have. It does also raise another point about how obfuscating the how multiple subscriptions is, and how deliberately misleading it feels. Clearly this should be cleaned up, otherwise it leaves you with the impression (especially for cynics like me) that this is a deliberate ploy to catch unsuspecting consumers such as myself in the unnecessarily complicated web of subscriptions.

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The 3MT shit-show

On Tuesday this week I participated in the Three-Minute Thesis competition for our faculty. What a fucking catastrophe. I had rehearsed pretty consistently for about three days leading up to it, and had spend about twice that long preparing the script. So I had a pretty solid explanation of my research, a good slide, and was reasonably confident going in...

Then about halfway through the presentation, I forget my lines...

So, I managed to make it to the end, but of course, because I had a big delay in the middle, I ran out of time to finish all the points of the script. So I found the exercise humiliating and it completely shattered my confidence.

To make matters worse, I performed my presentation without any notes. Being first in the schedule meant that I didn't get to see anyone else present before me, and many of the other presenters had notes... So if I had see other students going before me with notes, I might have taken my own notes up with me, and had something to refer to when I forgot my lines. But I was so fucking embarrassed that as soon as the heats were over, I fled - I still have no idea who won. And to be honest, I'm not sure if I even fucking care.

At the end of the day, the only reason I undertook the whole fucking exercise was to have something to put on my progress report, but overall it took more time and effort than what I think was worth it. Bullshit.

Below is the script and the slide I used:

Think about some of the most iconic and controversial moments on Australian TV in the last 20 years: John Aloisi puts us into the World Cup. Cathy Freeman wins gold. Adam Goodes getting booed by AFL crowds.

Almost more than anything else sport reflects our culture and binds us together socially.

So imagine trying to have conversations about what these events mean culturally, if only 30% of us could see it.

Or imagine trying to enjoy these events socially with friends and family, if you could only watch it on a phone.

This is what I am researching – what are the tensions inside the culture industry of sport on television, and what are the implications for our culture because of those tensions?

Because you see, in an era when audiences are fragmenting, sport rights are an especially hot property.

Live sport draws large audiences together who watch simultaneously, and who can’t avoid the advertising in it.

This drives profits for broadcasters.

Did you know that for the last four years in a row, the highest rating TV show has been the AFL Grand Final? Or that on AFL Grand Final day, more than 90% of televisions switched on in Australia are tuned into the game?

So for sports like the AFL, it’s a sellers’ market.

And if left to market forces, sports will sell their rights to the highest bidder.

But nowadays, the highest bidder might be a telecommunications company or social media platform or a search engine, who deliver sport online, often on mobile devices.

As demonstrated by Optus during the World Cup, new broadcasters may not be equipped to deliver sport reliably.

Alternatively, if really important sport goes behind a paywall, people can be driven to piracy.

You might remember the guy who got into trouble with Foxtel, for pointing his phone at a pay-per-view broadcast of a boxing match and streaming it onto Facebook.

And because it takes funds away from people who produce content, piracy isn’t good for broadcasters, or the sports, or the people who just want to enjoy their sport.

You might say, “Shouldn’t the government to step in, and make the really important sport available to everyone?”

And you’d be right, except the regulation that’s supposed to do that is so outdated as to effectively be obsolete.

So, by using the AFL as a case study, and by interviewing executives from TV, sport, and the government, I am investigating these issues, many of which are uniquely Australian.

My findings will inform investment and policy decisions, in order to defend the richness of our culture.

Because as a cultural, socially bonding experience, no one wants to watch footy on their phone.