Advanced Television

25% of MyTF1 football fans block ads

June 26, 2014

From Pascale Paoli-Lebailly in Paris

FOOTBALL : France vs Pays Bas - MAtch Amical - 05/03/2014Twenty-five per cent of French football fans who watch MyTF1 online are using software to skip advertising.

Though the World Cup matches generate big TV audiences on TF1’s linear TV channel, they are also being watched in high numbers online.

On June 18th, the France-Switzerland match attracted more than 17 million viewers on TF1 and another 1 million viewers via the MyTF1 website or app.

“Matches, which are also transmitted online, are financed thanks to advertising, but some [programmers] develop solutions that not only make ad breaks disappear, but also the capacity to finance matches,” eTF1’s  Director General Olivier Abecassis said during a hearing at French Senate. “This turns into a major piracy problem because broadcasting an event without monetising it is jeopardising it.”

TV spots prices range between €185,000 and €350,000 whilst ad videos displayed before and during the matches are sold for between €70,000 and €250,000. Prices jump to €400,000 when the announcer’ brand is designed on the whole screen.

TF1 is set to earn between €49 to 61 million from the World Cup, including almost €2 million for digital. But this is still too low to profit as the group is reported to have spend €80 million to air 28 matches.

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