Sky Sport, BT Sport scrap commercial subs
March 17, 2020
By Nik Roseveare
Sky Sports and BT Sport have stopped billing their commercial customers due to the coronavirus pandemic that has halted virtually all live sport around the globe.
Sky Sports suspended its fees this week and will not resume it “until a live sport schedule returns” and BT Sport similarly said that it will “suspend billing for pubs and clubs customers for a two week period,” and then presumably reassess.
“This is a goodwill gesture that we are putting in place while we monitor the situation,” read a statement from BT Sport. “We will keep customers updated as the situation develops.”
Simon Raggett, managing director of Sky Business, said: “We understand that these are challenging times for many of our Sky Business venues, who rely on showing live sport in a social environment to attract customers and revenue. Supporting these businesses and doing what we can to help them in uncertain times is very important to us. We would like to reassure our Sky Business venues […] we will not be charging them for their Sky Sports service until a live sport schedule returns.”
As well as the Premier League being suspended, the likes of F1, Test cricket, Six Nations rugby, golf and tennis tournaments have also all been postponed. Meanwhile high-profile US sporting leagues including the NBA, NHL, MLB, XFL and MLS have all been placed on hiatus, whilst the March Madness college basketball tournament has been cancelled altogether.