RTE to start charging for online content

The Cush

RTÉ Director General, Noel Curran, announced in a speech to journalism students at UL last week that RTE was to start charging overseas users of their website for premium online content in the coming months.

Irsh users of the site as TV Licence payers will not be charged for access.

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/rte-to-start-charging-for-online-content-29194707.html

The plan was first announced by the then new Director General back in Nov 2011

But just as other public institutions run specific exhibitions and events for which customers pay, either on entry or by subscription, so too RTÉ is considering developing new IP- based premium, live and video on-demand services for different audiences, particularly international audiences.

http://www.rte.ie/about/en/press-office/statements-speeches/2012/0911/337235-rte-in-the-digital-age-extending-public-value-online/

Mr E

Seems fair, tbh....

galtee boy

Presumably this means that say, Irish people in the UK will have to pay to watch Fair City, Late Late Show, News bulletins,Primetime etc on the RTE Player,much the same way that the BBC charge for the international version of its iPlayer ?

subway

depending on cost, it makes more sense, that instead of people paying for proxy services, rte should try get some of that money for themselves, i cant imagine its lucrative at the moment but with lots of young irish abroad it could work.

imo, live sports are probably much more likely to generate revenue, than much of the other content, from consumers based on the scramble on facebook for streaming links in the later stages of the all ireland etc

Richard Logue

Certainly live sports coverage would be a guaranteed money spinner. The trick will be for RTE to pitch the costs at a level below that of the Proxies otherwise people will vote with their wallets.

Digifriendly

Will this charge include those in N. Ireland?

icdg

Digifriendly wrote: »

Will this charge include those in N. Ireland?

I'd imagine it would depend on whether you currently recieve an IP address that is Northern Ireland-specific i.e. they would not deliberately set out to charge NI customers but those customers who choose to subscribe to a GB-based ISP might not receive an IP address which distinguishes them from a GB-based customer who would be charged.

Presumably customers of local ISPs (are there any other than UTV these days?) would be safe, though. EDIT: Apparently Virgin Media also.

STB

Largely irrelevant with the software that is out there these days.

Skid X

Richard Logue wrote: »

Certainly live sports coverage would be a guaranteed money spinner. The trick will be for RTE to pitch the costs at a level below that of the Proxies otherwise people will vote with their wallets.

RTE don't have the rights to stream much sport outside of Ireland. The broadcast rights to anything which would be attractive to a Worldwide audience is sold separately by the Rights holders (like the GAA Championships).